Event Title
How Visitation is Affecting Air Quality in Carlsbad Cavern
Session Type
Technical Sessions: Conservation Tools
Start Date
18-8-2020 1:15 PM
Description
Carlsbad Caverns National Park is monitoring carbon dioxide (CO2) in Carlsbad Cavern to assess the park’s current conditions as a component of a Visitor Use Management (VUM) study. Elevated CO2 concentrations can impact visitor safety, cave conservation, and visitor experience. This preliminary work establishes standard operating procedures for a future yearlong study. CO2 levels were monitored from June to July 2019 at a 5 minute sampling intervals in three locations: lower elevator waiting area, Big Room Junction, and King's Palace. Two major limitations of this study are the sparsity and quality of data due to the short two-month monitoring period, various data losses, and the unreliability of the data due to mathematical corrections for automatic baseline calibrations. CO2 levels increased consistently in June and July of 2019. While the CO2 levels decreased in the evening, they did not return to starting levels. Visitor CO2 fluxes were cumulative during these two months. There was a positive correlation between daily visitation numbers and CO2 levels at the elevator and Big Room Junction. There was not enough data from the King’s Palace sensor for data analysis. Given the limitations of this study, these results are preliminary and should not be extrapolated past June and July of 2019. Carbon dioxide monitoring should be continued for at least a year so stronger conclusions and seasonal patterns can be determined.
Recommended Citation
Meyer,, Sonia Presenter, "How Visitation is Affecting Air Quality in Carlsbad Cavern" (2020). Conservation of Fragile Karst Resources Proceedings. 3.
https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/con_karst_res_proc/con_karst_pro_2020/day_one/3
How Visitation is Affecting Air Quality in Carlsbad Cavern
Carlsbad Caverns National Park is monitoring carbon dioxide (CO2) in Carlsbad Cavern to assess the park’s current conditions as a component of a Visitor Use Management (VUM) study. Elevated CO2 concentrations can impact visitor safety, cave conservation, and visitor experience. This preliminary work establishes standard operating procedures for a future yearlong study. CO2 levels were monitored from June to July 2019 at a 5 minute sampling intervals in three locations: lower elevator waiting area, Big Room Junction, and King's Palace. Two major limitations of this study are the sparsity and quality of data due to the short two-month monitoring period, various data losses, and the unreliability of the data due to mathematical corrections for automatic baseline calibrations. CO2 levels increased consistently in June and July of 2019. While the CO2 levels decreased in the evening, they did not return to starting levels. Visitor CO2 fluxes were cumulative during these two months. There was a positive correlation between daily visitation numbers and CO2 levels at the elevator and Big Room Junction. There was not enough data from the King’s Palace sensor for data analysis. Given the limitations of this study, these results are preliminary and should not be extrapolated past June and July of 2019. Carbon dioxide monitoring should be continued for at least a year so stronger conclusions and seasonal patterns can be determined.
Comments
This presentation was part of the Technical Sessions on Conservation Tools. Presentation topics ranged from cave conservation techniques, environmental education, community engagement, resource protection assessment, and scientific and cultural research from across the globe. Formats vary from traditional PowerPoints to films to story maps and informal interviews.