Post by Sharon Faulkner on Aug 10, 2006 8:05:02 GMT -5
Springfield Plateau Group (Grotto) goes deep
Restoration projects and educating the public about caves are among the organization's goals.
By Ann Keyes
August 10, 2006
Who: Springfield Plateau Group
Mission: To conserve, survey and manage caves, says the group's Web site. A project-oriented group, SPG works with public agencies and private landowners to foster a better understanding of caves and the importance of conserving them.
About: Organized only a few months, members of SPG are mostly longtime cavers with a goal in mind, says SPG president Jonathan Beard: "We want to return as many caves to their natural state as we can." The nonprofit group does that by exploring, mapping, restoring and gating caves.
A Web site offers much information on the group and includes a wealth of photos of stunning caverns in Missouri; the site is available to the public. Members of SPG, though, are linked to the group's online quarterly newsletter containing meeting minutes and specific information on future trips to caves. Members may also link to an online journal with detailed descriptions and photographs of completed work, says Beard. Members may also access the group's now-budding library of caves and information regarding their natural treasures.
Annual membership for SPG is $20. Meetings are held the second Wednesday of each month at Library Station on North Kansas
Expressway in Springfield. The meetings, open to the public, "... (are) a good way for non-cavers to find out about the exciting world beneath us, and to learn about safe and appropriate caving practices," says SPG.
Past projects: As part of public outreach, SPG members led Kansas high school science students through Breakdown Cave where students were taught elements of cave geology, hydrology and biology. The next month scout groups were led through the same Christian County cavern that acts as a restoration laboratory, says Beard. Also in April, Greene County's Doling Park Cave was cleaned by SPG members, as was the park's stream.
Restoration projects are just as important to the group as education, says Beard, who weeks ago reattached vandalized stalagmites in Meramec State Park's Fisher Cave.
A few dozen mineral growths have been restored in a project that has spanned the last three years. Using epoxy, Beard and other members of SPG reattach draperies and cover lines with color-matched clay.
Upcoming: Even if you are not a member of SPG, there might be work for you: SPG's Web site lists outings to Fisher Cave and Christian County's Smallin Cave in the next few weeks for cleanups and more. The end of September finds SPG members mapping Garrison Cave near Ozark.
Further ahead: "There are over 6,000 caves in Missouri," says Beard. There's still a lot of work to do.
Want to join, volunteer or need to know more? Sit in on a monthly meeting; additional information is found at www.spgcavers.org
www.news-leader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060810/LIFE06/60809012/1037
Restoration projects and educating the public about caves are among the organization's goals.
By Ann Keyes
August 10, 2006
Who: Springfield Plateau Group
Mission: To conserve, survey and manage caves, says the group's Web site. A project-oriented group, SPG works with public agencies and private landowners to foster a better understanding of caves and the importance of conserving them.
About: Organized only a few months, members of SPG are mostly longtime cavers with a goal in mind, says SPG president Jonathan Beard: "We want to return as many caves to their natural state as we can." The nonprofit group does that by exploring, mapping, restoring and gating caves.
A Web site offers much information on the group and includes a wealth of photos of stunning caverns in Missouri; the site is available to the public. Members of SPG, though, are linked to the group's online quarterly newsletter containing meeting minutes and specific information on future trips to caves. Members may also link to an online journal with detailed descriptions and photographs of completed work, says Beard. Members may also access the group's now-budding library of caves and information regarding their natural treasures.
Annual membership for SPG is $20. Meetings are held the second Wednesday of each month at Library Station on North Kansas
Expressway in Springfield. The meetings, open to the public, "... (are) a good way for non-cavers to find out about the exciting world beneath us, and to learn about safe and appropriate caving practices," says SPG.
Past projects: As part of public outreach, SPG members led Kansas high school science students through Breakdown Cave where students were taught elements of cave geology, hydrology and biology. The next month scout groups were led through the same Christian County cavern that acts as a restoration laboratory, says Beard. Also in April, Greene County's Doling Park Cave was cleaned by SPG members, as was the park's stream.
Restoration projects are just as important to the group as education, says Beard, who weeks ago reattached vandalized stalagmites in Meramec State Park's Fisher Cave.
A few dozen mineral growths have been restored in a project that has spanned the last three years. Using epoxy, Beard and other members of SPG reattach draperies and cover lines with color-matched clay.
Upcoming: Even if you are not a member of SPG, there might be work for you: SPG's Web site lists outings to Fisher Cave and Christian County's Smallin Cave in the next few weeks for cleanups and more. The end of September finds SPG members mapping Garrison Cave near Ozark.
Further ahead: "There are over 6,000 caves in Missouri," says Beard. There's still a lot of work to do.
Want to join, volunteer or need to know more? Sit in on a monthly meeting; additional information is found at www.spgcavers.org
www.news-leader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060810/LIFE06/60809012/1037
