This book presents the latest advances in karstology by researchers at the ZRC SAZU Karst Research Institute, Slovenia – home of Classical Karst. It features interdisciplinary investigations carried out on the karst surface, subsurface, caves, and associated waters. It covers various topics, such as analysis of karst processes, including the mineralogical and lithological characteristics of sediments and carbonate rocks; structural geological mapping; detecting the old traces of paleokarst; the formation of karst surfaces in a variety of types of rock and conditions; and the evolution of karst, which can aid in dating sediments, and in tracing aquifers using artificial and natural tracers. In addition, the book provides detailed information on the use and development of various research methods, ranging from comprehensive field research, long-term measurements, and laboratory analyses to computer and laboratory modeling. Integrating karst geology, geomorphology, hydrology, ecology, speleobiology, and microbiology research, these methods provide readers with a far deeper understanding of karst terrains.

The book is the result of joint work and many years of mutual cooperation between researchers from Slovenia and Croatia. It was made as part of the transboundary project ŽIVO! Življenje – voda! (Life – Water!) (IPA CBC SI-HR 2007-2013), which involved the participation of authors from project partner institutions as well as invited authors who are famil­iar with the characteristics of the karst area of Northern Istria and the conditions there relating to drinking water supply. The monograph presents the natural features of Northern Istria, the karst and karst phenomena, karst hy­drogeology, ecology and microbiology, and highlights in particular the vulnerability of the karst to various human activities. The main focus of attention is on karst water sources. In assessing their characteristics we used available knowledge of karst water on both sides of the border and supplemented it with new research on the transboundary area in question, which was based on field measurements and sampling, and chemical, microbiological and biologi­cal analysis of water. The collected findings form the basis for planning more effective monitoring of the quality of karst water sources, their protection and consequently the improvement of their quality. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Knjiga je rezultat skupnega dela in dolgoletnega medsebojnega sodelovanja raziskovalcev iz Slovenije in Hrvaške. Nastala je v sklopu čezmejnega projekta ŽIVO! Življenje – voda! (IPA CBC SI-HR 2007-2013), kjer so sodelovali tako avtorji iz inštitucij projektnih partnerjev kot vabljeni avtorji, ki poznajo značilnosti kraškega območja severne Istre in tamkajšnje razmere pri oskrbi s pitno vodo. V monografiji so predstavljene naravne danosti severne Istre, kras in kraški pojavi, kraška hidrogeologija, ekologija in mikrobiologija, posebej pa je izpostavljena ranljivost krasa na različne človekove dejavnosti. Glavna pozornost je posvečena kraškim vodnim virom. Pri oceni njihovih značilnosti smo uporabili razpoložljiva spoznanja o kraških vodah z obeh strani meje in jih dopolnili z novimi raziskavami obravnavanega čezmejnega prostora, ki so temeljile na terenskih meritvah in vzorčenju ter kemijskih, mikrobioloških in bioloških analizah vode. Zbrani izsledki so osnova za načrtovanje bolj učinkovite zaščite vodnih virov in posledično za izboljšanje njihove kakovosti.

Knjiga povzema rezultate znanstvenega sodelovanja med Inštitutom za raziskovanje krasa ZRC SAZU, Yunnanskim geografskim inštitutom in Geološkim inštitutom Kitajske akademije znanosti. Raziskave so potekale na območju v bližini Liupanshuija v zahodnem delu province Guizhou, na kraških planotah med Guizhouom in Yunnanom ter v Lunanskem kamnitem gozdu in kopastem krasu Xichoua v Yunnanu. Predstavljene so splošne značilnosti območja, litološka in strukturna zgradba ter geomorfološke, speleološke in hidrogeološke značilnosti, pa tudi različni tipi izrabe tal in njihovi vplivi na okolje.

The study of the vadose zone has been based on own continuous long-term measurements and analyses of precipitation on the surface and of several representative trickles in the vadose zone of Postojna Cave over consecutive hydrological years. It offers an explanation of the dynamics of the percolation of water and simultaneous transfer of contaminants and their impact on the dissolution of carbonate rock in the vadose zone. The research contributes to the understanding of the role of the vadose zone in the karst aquifer. The emphasis is placed on a multi-parameter approach based on the simultaneous use of a number of different methods, not only tracing natural tracers (such as the continuos measurement of discharge, temperature, electrical conductivity, isotopic composition of oxigen, content of carbonates, calcium, magnesium, chlorides, nitrates, sulfates and o-phosphates, electrical resistivity imaging) but also tests with artificial tracers using different methods of injection. The research contributes to the understanding of the role of the vadose zone in the karst aquifers and is directly applicable in planning the long-term protection of the quality of karst springs. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Knjiga razkriva dinamiko pretakanja in zadrževanja padavin v vadozni coni tudi v večletnem merilu in nanjo vezan prenos kontaminantov, njihov vpliv na raztapljanje kamnine ter vlogo vadozne cone v kraškem vodonosniku. Novo znanje je neposredno uporabno pri načrtnem dolgoročnem varovanju kakovosti kraških izvirov. Podrobne večletne zvezne, multiparameterske raziskave pretakanja padavin in prenosa kontaminantov skozi vadozno cono so bile zasnovane na rezultatih predhodnih dolgoletnih raziskav pretakanja vode skozi kraške vodonosnike. Novo znanje je bilo pridobljeno z dolgotrajnimi, sočasnimi meritvami padavin na površju ter meritvami in analizami reprezentativnih curkov v vadozni coni Postojnske jame v zaporednih letih. Poudarek je bil na sočasni uporabi številnih metod, ne le sledenj naravnih sledil (zvezne meritve pretoka, temperature, električne prevodnosti, izotopske analize kisika, analize karbonatov, kalcija, magnezija, kloridov, nitratov, sulfatov in o-fosfatov, uporaba električne tomografije) ampak tudi sledenj z umetnimi sledili z različnim načinom injiciranja.