Florida is typically considered to be tectonically stable and representative of global eustatic sea level with little evidence for any anomalous local subsidence or uplift during the late Cenozoic. Sea level during most of that time did not significantly rise above the present level. However, paleoshoreline features near the border of northern Florida and southern Georgia have been found to contain marine fossils of Pleistocene age at elevations of between 42 and 49 m above mean sea level, suggesting that some mechanism of epeirogenic uplift has affected the area. A possible cause of uplift during the late Cenozoic is mass removal from the Florida carbonate platform via karst-related groundwater dissolution. Calculations carried out as a part of this study, using measurements of dissolved carbonate in Florida's first- and second-magnitude springs, shows that the karst area of central and north Florida is losing a minimum of 4.8 x 105 m3 /yr of limestone. This carbonate mass loss is equivalent to an approximate thickness of 1 meter of limestone every 160,000 years. The impact of long-term carbonate dissolution and mass loss from the Florida platform has led to isostatic uplift of at least 9 m and as much 58 m since the beginning of the Quaternary (~1.6 Ma). These results were obtained using the measured mass loss rate and calculation of the isostatic response to unloading of the Florida platform. Isostatic uplift due to dissolution of the Florida platform would at least in part explain the occurrence of Plio-Pleistocene marine fossils at elevations significantly higher than sea levels are known to have been during that time. / A Thesis submitted to the Department of Geological Sciences in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. / Degree Awarded: Summer Semester, 2006. / Date of Defense: April 25, 2006. / Springs, Karst / Includes bibliographical references. / Joseph F. Donoghue, Professor Directing Thesis; Sergio Fagherazzi, Committee Member; Jennifer E. Georgen, Committee Member; Sherwood W. Wise, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_169215 |
| Contributors | Willett, Michael Alan (authoraut), Donoghue, Joseph F. (professor directing thesis), Fagherazzi, Sergio (committee member), Georgen, Jennifer E. (committee member), Wise, Sherwood W. (committee member), Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences (degree granting department), Florida State University (degree granting institution) |
| Publisher | Florida State University, Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text |
| Format | 1 online resource, computer, application/pdf |
| Rights | This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). The copyright in theses and dissertations completed at Florida State University is held by the students who author them. |
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