Organizing and transferring knowledge to practice for planning life on karst

The objective is to search for practical sustainable solutions, which stem from the basic knowledge of karst phenomena. In the process, we will harmonize the needs of societal development with nature conservation objectives. By conducting karstological monitoring of construction works on the route of two 7 km long tunnels, we will test the existing model of predictions of karstification and groundwater levels, and improve it based on new findings. We will obtain data on the past and present speleogenetic environment of the formation of caves in the deep-karst zone near the groundwater, which is nearly inaccessible from the surface.

The entrance of a new cave during the construction of tunnels 2 TDK, photo Blaž Kogovšek.

A distinct fault visible inside the cave that was discovered during the construction of tunnels 2 TDK, photo Blaž Kogovšek.