MAKING COMMUNITIES BETTER –
BY PROTECTING OUR WATER

            The planners and developers in the Barren River Area have new tools to help growth in the future reflect our unique karst geography.  A Hoffman Environmental Research Institute team, lead by Dr. Chris Groves, has completed a mapping project measuring groundwater vulnerability and sensitivity.

Groundwater sensitivity refers to the inherent ease with which groundwater can be contaminated. Dr. Groves and graduate student Andrea Croskrey developed digital methods for identifying areas of varying sensitivity at a scale of 1:24,000. The study area includes extensive limestone karst sinkhole plains, with groundwater that is generally extremely sensitive to contamination. Digitally Vectorized Geologic Quadrangles (DVGQ) were combined with elevation data to both identify sensitive regions and to identify zones of “high-risk runoff” where contaminants could be transported to more sensitive areas.

Future work will bring additional layers of data, such as soils, to allow for a more rapid assessment of vulnerability.  The attached map demonstrates availability of data.