A Summary of Karst Regions in Tennessee

Bradley, Michael

ABSTRACT: Karst terrains are characteristic of much of the eastern two thirds of Tennessee. The occurrence of karst features in Tennessee affects property development, infrastructure, water supply, contaminant transport, and flood and drought planning in Middle and East Tennessee. Karst aquifers in Tennessee provided close to 40 million gallons per day to public water systems in 2015 with the carbonate formations in the Valley and Ridge province of East Tennessee being the second most productive aquifer in the state. The interconnection between surface water and karst systems results in offstream flooding in Tennessee. Sinkhole collapse and the potential for sinkhole collapse have affected subdivisions in several regions in the state. The importance of karst resources to the hydrology and ecology of Tennessee has only been fully defined in relatively small areas. Additional work is needed to further evaluate karst features relative to public water supplies and susceptibility of the systems to contamination, karst hydrology and ecology along the Cumberland Plateau escarpment, and impacts and controls of sinkhole flooding.