SINKHOLE GEOMORPHOLOGY AND DISTRIBUTION ON THE KAIBAB PLATEA, GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK

The Kaibab Plateau is home to over 7,000 known sinkholes located on the north rim of Grand Canyon National Park (GRCA). These sinkholes act as the primary recharge points for many springs below the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, including Roaring Springs—the sole water source for the park and the six million annual visitors and employees. To better characterize the underlying conduit system, this study examined the morphology and distribution of sinkholes on the Kaibab Plateau at GRCA relative to other karst regions. Sinkhole identification was automated using ArcGIS analysis of 1m² resolution LiDAR analysis of the Kaibab Plateau. Individual sinkholes were processed and filtered in Python, and graphed as a frequency-depth distribution adapted from Troester et al, 1984. Results indicate that the Kaibab Plateau possess a population of sinkholes that closely resemble temperate karst regions such as the Kentucky plains in terms of surface geomorphology, and potentially in terms of subsurface conduit storage and drainage capacity as well. These results provide an important step towards understanding the complex groundwater dynamics of the Kaibab Plateau may aid future efforts to protect GRCA’s water supply.