VEGETATION MANAGEMENT TO LIMIT SINKHOLE COLLAPSES IN KARST REGIONS OF KENTUCKY

Class V Injection Wells are a widely used method of storm water mitigation in Warren County, Kentucky and other karst regions of the United States. Due to the karst landscape, there is an increasing amount of collapse and water quality deterioration caused by soil erosion around these injection wells. In cooperation with the City of Bowling Green, a research team conducted an investigation on class V wells and sinkholes within the county by analyzing 100-foot radial buffer zones. The goal of this research is to determine the impact of vegetation management on the rate of collapse and erosion. The data was used to evaluate the effectiveness of current BMPs for Class V Injection Wells and for sinkhole formation in karst areas. Shrub plantings in sinkholes and retention basins was found to have the best resistance to sinkhole collapse.