Publication Date

8-2024

Advisor(s) - Committee Chair

Jason Polk, Pat Kambesis, Leslie North

Degree Program

Department of Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences

Degree Type

Master of Science

Abstract

Sinkholes are geologic hazards that occur in karst landscapes and can be highly destructive and costly. Sinkhole mitigation plans and development policies are nonexistent at the federal level within the United States and vary significantly at the state level. The lack of a unified standard for sinkhole mitigation planning is partly due to a lack of available data and resources needed to assess sinkhole risk. While there are established sinkhole assessments within the literature, they focus more on the detection and prediction of sinkholes rather than a holistic approach to risk assessment. The goal of this study is to create an index to assess sinkhole risk using a holistic approach to improve sinkhole hazard mitigation planning on a local scale. This study includes a review of state hazard mitigation plans to compare existing sinkhole policies and assess how well they assess the characteristics of sinkhole hazards. The study resulted in a sinkhole hazard index called the Sinkhole Assessment For Estimating Risk in Karst (SAFERKarst) Index, created for developers, environmental managers, and policymakers to inform urban karst mitigation planning and policy implementation based on environmental, economic, and social factors.

Disciplines

Earth Sciences | Environmental Health and Protection | Environmental Public Health | Environmental Sciences | Geology | Medicine and Health Sciences | Physical Sciences and Mathematics | Public Health

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