Abstract
The creek Jerstedter Bach is part of the Ringelheimer Mulde along the northern rim of the Harz Mountains in Northern Germany, a trough structure comprising steeply dipping limestones. The limestones are well karstified and drain parts of the region efficiently via sub-surface flow. As the entire region is intensively used by agriculture, contamination of the fast-flowing karst aquifer is a potential problem. During 2006, a small sinkhole (Windmühlenweg) developed alongside the Jerstedter Bach close to the city of Goslar. The sinkhole enlarged rapidly, with a small cave within the gravel cover diverting part of the creek to the subsurface karst catchment. Geophysical methods (gravimetry, geoelectrics) were used around the sinkhole to determine its extent and possible evolution. A negative Bouguer anomaly was found over the sinkhole, indicating more voids further downstream. The geoelectric survey helped to identify the old meandering course of the small river, which was straightened during the cultural land reform in the twentieth century.
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References
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Acknowledgments
We would like to thank Dipl-Geogr. Frank Jacobs and Dr. Holger Steffen for their help during the campaign. Comments on an earlier version of this manuscript by Mario Parise and Phillip Häuselmann have been very helpful in improving the manuscript.
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Kaufmann, G., Romanov, D. Geophysical investigation of a sinkhole in the northern Harz foreland (North Germany). Environ Geol 58, 401–405 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00254-008-1598-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00254-008-1598-0