CAVE MANAGEMENT: ASSESSMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION AT CORONADO NATIONAL MEMORIAL, ARIZONA

The geology of Coronado National Memorial, in southeastern Arizona, spans more than one billion years with a rich history including mountain building events, rifting, periods of shallow seas, and supervolcanoes. These events created a diverse geologic landscape composed of Permian limestone, Mesozoic and Tertiary volcanics, and Quaternary deposits. Karst features formed 15,000-10,000 years ago by phreatic conditions, leading to the dissolution of the limestone.

Geologic resources have primarily been passively managed since the Memorial’s inception, with the most well-known feature, Coronado Cave, operated as a “wild” cave without permits. Due to the detrimental effects of vandalism to Coronado Cave and a need for more scientific information about other geologic features in the Memorial, an overhaul of the cave management program was initiated in 2014.

Through the GeoCorps America program, a partnership between the Geological Society of America and the National Park Service, the cave management plan was updated to enhance monitoring activities and meet current management objectives. This effort resulted in a more robust management program, which now includes updated management objectives; protocols for monitoring and remediation; a cave safety protocol; updated cave maps; collection of anthropological and meteorological data; information about possible unknown caves through reconnaissance efforts; and the creation of education and outreach materials for training park staff and improving public interpretive programs. This endeavor has served the mission of the National Park Service by enhancing the preservation of park caverns for the enjoyment of future generations.