Introduction to the symposium
Authors: Culver David C. 
Published: December 2013

http://dx.doi.org/10.3986/ac.v42i2-3.657 From January 7 to January 11, 2013, the Karst Waters Institute (KWI) and the National Cave and Karst Research Institute (NCRKI) held an international and multidisciplinary symposium on Carbon and Boundaries in Karst at NCKRI headquarters in Carlsbad, New Mexico.There is growing interest in the dynamics of both inorganic and organic carbon in karst systems, and especially in the flux of carbon and nutrients between the surface and subsurface, and between different components (e.g. epikarst and vadose zone) in the karst subsurface. This symposium was about these and other questions connected to carbon in karst and boundaries in karst. It was especially timely both because of rapid advances in the field and the importance of carbon sequestration in global climate change The symposium highlighted recent advances in biology, geology, and hydrology that are helping us understand the dynamics of karst ecosystems, especially with respect to carbon. The talks were organized around seven main themes:• The Upper Boundary – Epikarst• The Lower Boundary – Phreatic Zone• Lateral Inputs — Insurgences• Lateral Outputs — Resurgences• CO2 — Processing and Storage• Organic Carbon — Sources and Quality• Synthesis and Large Scale ModelsSixty participants from seven countries attended the week-long meeting which included an excursion to Carlsbad Caverns National Park. For the first time at a KWI meeting, several participants, who were unable to attend in person, gave their presentations via Skype. The meeting was highlighted by two keynote presentations:• Groundwater Ecology of Alluvial River Flood Plains, Jack Stanford, Flathead Lake Biological Station, Polson, Montana• Karst – Conduit Matrix Exchange and the Karst Hyporheic Zone, John Wilson, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technoloogy, Socorro, New Mexico.Two most distinguished karst scientists, William B. White of Pennsylvania State University and Derek Ford of McMaster University jointly summed up the meeting. The following is a list of oral and poster presentations given at the meeting. Participants were invited to submit articles that elaborated their meeting presentations to Acta Carsologica.Penny J. Boston: Chemotrophy meets heterotrophy: the inverted 'critical zone' of the subsurfaceKathleen Brannen, Annette Engel, and Ross Larson: Microbial controls on in situ production of dissolved organic matterAmy L. Brown, Jonathan B. Martin, Elizabeth Screaton, John Ezell, James Sutton and Patricia Spellman:Redox state in karst aquifers: Impacts of DOC- and DO-rich river water intrusion into Floridan aquifer springsTerri Brown, Susan M. Pfiffner, and Annette S. Engel: Component isolation and lipid profiling to characterize dissolved organic matter transformations along a groundwater flow pathSarah K. Carmichael, Mary J. Carmichael, Amanda Strom, Krissy W. Johnson, Leigh Anne Roble, Yongli Gao, Cara M. Santelli, and Suzanna L. Bräuer: Using biominerals to assess anthropogenic inpact: a case study in Carter Salt Peter Cave, CarterCounty, TNMatthew D. Covington: A simple theoretical framework to interpret spring variations and constrain mechanistic models of karst processesDavid C. Culver and Tanja Pipan: Convergence and Divergence in Caves and Shallow Subterranean HabitatsAnnette Summers Engel: Microbial activities at geochemical interfaces in cave and karst environmentsCene Fišer: Interactions between surface and subterranean amphipods in springsLee J. Florea: Preliminary carbon sequestration and denudation rates within the karst of the Cumberland Plateau, USADaniel W. Fong, Christopher Seabolt, and Kaitlin C. Esson: Determinants of macroinvertebrate diversity in karst springs of the Mid-Atlantic region, USADerek Ford: Bicarbonate water chemistry of Little Limestone Lake, a beautiful marl lake in Manitoba, CanadaFranci Gabrovšek: The relative importance of speleogenetic phases as revealed by numerical modelsChristian Griebler: Dynamics and limitations of organic carbon turnover in porous aquifersJonathan S. Harding and Troy Watson: The longitudinal response of benthic invertebrate communities to caves Katrina K. Henry, Kenneth A. Salaz, and John L. Wilson: Experimental design and instrumentation to observe karst conduit hyporhiec flowJanet S. Herman, Alexandria G. Hounshell, Rima B. Franklin, and Aaron L. Mills: Biological control on acid generation at the conduit-bedrock boundary in submerged cavesBenjamin T. Hutchins*, Benjamin F. Schwartz, and Annette S. Engel: Environmental controls on organic matter production and transport across surface- subsurface and geochemical boundaries in the Edwards Aquifer, Texas, USADaniel S. Jones, Irene Schaperdoth, and Jennifer L. Macalady: Subaerial microbial life in the sulfidic Frasassi Cave System, ItalyWilliam K. Jones: Physical Structure of the epikarstJames E. Kaufmann and Jeffery Crews: Stratigraphic control on conduit development in the Ozark Karst, Missouri, USAKatherine J. Knierim, Erik Pollock, and Phillip D. Hays: Using isotopes of dissolved inorganic carbon species and water to separate sources of recharge in a cave spring, northwestern ArkansasAndrew J. Kowalczk: Quantitatively modeling source influences on cave air carbon dioxide chemistryErik B. Larson and John E. Mylroie: Quaternary glacial cycles: karst processes and the global CO2 budgetJonathan B. Martin, Mitra Khadka, Marie Kurz, John Ezell, Amy Brown: Karst in the global carbon cycleIoana N. Meleg: Spatio-temporal trends in diversity of subsurface assemblages from the vadose zone of the Carpathian karst in RomaniaAaron L. Mills, Janet S. Herman, and Terrence N. Tysall: Comparison of water quality in submerged caves with that of diffuse groundwater immediately proximal to the conduitDiana E. Northu*, Noelle G. Martínez, Lory O. Henderson and Elizabeth T. Montano: Carbon cycling in arid land caves: implications for microbial processesPedro Oromí and Heriberto D. López: Shallow Subterranean Habitats in Volcanic TerrainRandall L. Paylor* and Carol M. Wicks: Particulate inorganic carbon flux in karst and its significance to karst development and the carbon cycleTanja Pipan and David C. Culver: Patterns of organic carbon in shallow subterranean habitats (SSHs)Junbing Pu*, Daoxian Yuan, Licheng Shen and Heping Zha: Seasonal, diurnal and storm-scale PCO2 variations of cave stream in subtropical karst area, Chongqing, SW ChinaNataša Ravbar: Variability of groundwater flow and transport processes in karst under different hydrologic conditionsWhere’s the fire? Sam Rochelle, Michael N. Spilde, and Penny J. Boston: An analysis of carbon precipitates in Black and other caves of the Upper Guadalupe Mountains, New MexicoBenjamin F. Schwartz*, Susanne Schwinning, Brett Gerard, Kelly R. Kukowski, Chasity L. Stinson, and Heather C. Dammeye: Using hydrogeochemical and ecohydrologic responses to understand epikarst processes in semi-arid systems, Edwards Plateau, Texas, USAKevin S. Simon: Carbon flux in the Dorvan-Cleyzieu karst: lessons from the past to guide future researchJack A. Stanford: Groundwater ecology of alluvial river flood plainsPhilip van Beynen, Derek Ford and Henry Schwarcz: Seasonal influx of organic carbon into Marengo Cave, Indiana, USAMichael P Venarsky, Brock M Huntsman, Jonathan P Benstead, Alexander D Huryn: Testing carbon limitation of a cave stream ecosystem using a whole-reach detritus amendmentGeorge Veni:The role of karst conduit morphology, hydrology, and evolution in the transport, storage, and discharge of carbon and associated sedimentsWilliam B. White: Carbon fluxes in karst aquifers: sources, sinks, and the effect of storm flowsCarol Wicks: Hydrograph interpretation − changes in timeJohn L. Wilson: Karst conduit-matrix exchange and the karst hyporheic zoneYuan Daoxian: The role of geological processes in global carbon cycle: a reviewZhang Qjang: The stability of carbon sink effect related to carbonate rock dissolution: a case study of the Caohai Lake geological carbon sink