Identifying the link between lineament and cave passage trends to comprehend fractures continuity and influence on the Kinta Valley karst system, Peninsular Malaysia

• Main Authors: Kassa, Solomon, Pierson, Bernard, Chow, Weng Sum, Ab Talib, Jasmi
• Format: Citation Index Journal
• Published: Tampa, FL (USA). 2011
• Subjects: QE Geology
• Online Access: http://eprints.utp.edu.my/7157/1/Karst_for_Kinta_Valley-new.pdf; http://www.ijs.speleo.it; http://eprints.utp.edu.my/7157/
• Institution: Universiti Teknologi Petronas

The Kinta Valley karst landscape is characterised by residual limestone hills scattered all over the valley. The aim of this study is to ascertain the link between lineament and cave passage orientations, and to identify the main fracture controlling the karst features. To achieve that, standard cave surveying and direct lineament extraction techniques, from a 2.5m resolution spot image, were employed. Six trends of lineaments were obtained from the remnant limestone hills, and their main orientation appears to be in the NNW-SSE. Similarly, various caves were surveyed and mapped; their passage orientation analyses reveal that NNW-SSE is the prominent direction. The similarity of the lineaments orientation and caves passage trend attests that the karst formation is controlled by the geological structures. Such a similar trend observed in all hills enabled to infer the orientation of the primary structure responsible for the formation of the extant karst features. The multi-fracturing episodes rendered the Kinta Valley to be structurally complex and the karst features unravelled this effect, as evidenced by features such as circular and sinuous cave passage morphology, which developed ensuing fractures oriented in different directions.