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An estimated 20% of the world's land surface is underlain by lithologies favorable for karst formation. Karst features (e.g., sinkholes) and soils coevolve, likely influencing local pedogenesis, soil carbon storage, and hydrologic patterns. While karst is widespread, our understanding of the influence of karst geomorphology on pedogenesis remains limited. To better estimate the impact of karst geomorphology on pedogenesis, we characterized nine pedons as a function of landscape position (i.e., toposequence) in two subsidence sinkholes located in the Inner Bluegrass physiographic region of central Kentucky; we characterized a suite of soil physical, chemical, and mineralogical properties. The Inner Bluegrass is underlain by a phosphatic limestone and is susceptible to karst formation. Expectedly, total carbon was greater in lowland positions relative to upland landscape positions. However, inverse relationships between elevation and clay content, selective iron, aluminum, and silicon extracts contradicted previous toposequence trends. Clay mineralogy differences between toeslope and summit positions suggested sediment transport from summit to toeslope positions. Karst geomorphology may limit pedogenesis and facilitate more rapid material export through karst conduits compared to other lithologies. Given the extent of karst terrains and lithologies susceptible to karst formation, future work is needed to understand the magnitude of the impact of karst on pedogenesis and other earth system processes. Sinkholes are common features in karst topography and have variable morphologies.Soil physical and chemical properties are variable between karst sinkholes.Typical toposequence trends may be reversed in sinkholes due to the impact of karst features.

HARRISBURG - Pennsylvania stands to lose almost $425 million in annual revenues under a proposal to repeal the state's 2 percent tax on nonqualified annuities. But state officials and insurance [...]

HARRISBURG -- A recent report confirms what Philadelphia-area drivers already know: They still pay more than anyone else in the state to insure their automobiles. Despite sweeping reforms four years [...]

HARRISBURG -- Proponents of court reform had hoped the hoopla behind the impeachment of Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Rolf Larsen would provide the public and legislative impetus for change. After [...]

HARRISBURG -- Public Utility Commissioner Joseph Rhodes Jr. was feeling a little sheepish. At an earlier PUC meeting, he said customers of Bell Atlantic-Pennsylvania 'got raped' under a decision by [...]

HARRISBURG - Imagine a manufacturing plant in Pennsylvania where the employees will work for minimum wage without a complaint. In fact, $4.25 an hour is a hefty hike from the [...]

HARRISBURG - In Washington, it's the Whitewater affair that's diverted attention from national health-care reform. Here in the state capital, debate over the same issue has been overshadowed by a [...]

HARRISBURG -- A legislative committee has delayed release of a study on the State Workmen's Compensation Fund, drawing charges from Labor Secretary Thomas P. Foley that Republicans are trying to [...]

Fees on regulated substance deliveries generated $294 million for the Underground Storage Tank Indemnification Fund by the end of 1996. Regulators estimate that less than 10,000 of the state's 42,000 [...]

Harrisburg - Former Gov. Robert P. Casey made reforming the state's health-care system his last big initiative. During his final years in office, the lame-duck governor pushed for a Pennsylvania [...]

Harrisburg - One of the biggest crowd pleasers during Gov. Tom Ridge's inaugural speech was a section promising big changes at the Department of Environmental Resources. Members of the SRO [...]

HARRISBURG -- One of the weightier projects remaining for lawmakers to tackle in the waning days of the 1993-94 session is reforming the way life insurance is sold in Pennsylvania. [...]

HARRISBURG - When Democrats voted against a local-tax reform bill last month at the state Capitol, they complained it would mean windfalls for big business. Big business agreed -- and [...]

HARRISBURG -- Labor says the proposed 'Workplace Antiretaliation Act,' is necessary to protect workers from the retribution of angry bosses. Business says that if the bill is enacted, bosses will [...]

HARRISBURG -- For most companies, there is no next-best thing to being there. In today's highly competitive global economy, it's one-on-one contact that makes the sale, wins the contract and [...]

HARRISBURG -- Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Ridge laid out his plan for business-tax cuts last week. It hardly was unexpected. The GOP gubernatorial candidates (and even a few of the [...]

The ink had barely dried on a bill to bring relief to businesses burdened by skyrocketing workers compensation rates, when the people who charge those rates decided to seek a [...]

Municipal officials waiting on Harrisburg to reform their local tax structure should take some advice from the top: Don't expect anything soon. Local tax reform has crept back into the [...]

Reports on sports teams manager Bill Giles' statement in the `Philadelphia Daily News' that the expects Pennsylvania state to come up with most of the funding for his stadium plans. Schedule of the release of report from the Sports and Exposition Facilities Task Force; Concerns on funding.

Reports on the effect of the new federal telecommunications law to the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC). Shift of regulatory responsibilities from overseeing a monopoly industry to one driven by competition; Ability of cable and long-distance companies to compete for local calling customers; Local phone companies that have been directed by PUC.

Reports on the reactions to Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge's proposed 1996-97 budget. Praise from state Republicans and criticism from state Democrats; Proposed business tax cuts and tax credits.

Looks at the slogans summited by the readers of Philadelphia Business Journal, pertaining to the Pennsylvania's new state slogan contest.

Focuses on the need for a new slogan for the state of Pennsylvania. Use of sloganeering to improve tourism; Governor Tom Ridge's call for effective slogan campaigns. INSET: PBJ contest..

Reports on the Industrial Energy Consumers of Pennsylvania's call for help in reducing their electric bills. Accusations against electric companies; Call for the Public Utility Commission to deregulate several aspects of the electric industry to reduce rates and improve service; Electric utilities' opposition against deregulation.

Reports on Pennsylvania's budget for 1994. $111 million business-tax cuts; Spending plan; Limited restoration of the net operating loss (NOL) carry-forward provision.

Opinion. Comments on the beginning of health-care debate in Pennsylvania two years before President Bill Clinton's health care reform. Senator Harris Wofford's use of national health insurance as election battlecry; Governor Robert P. Casey's Pennsylvania Health Security Act; Health-care costs.

A letter to the editor is presented in response to the article "Design notebook: Material legacy," published in the September 2007 issue.

Reports on legislation sponsored by Bruce Smith requiring electrical appliance retailers to post notices about electromagnetic fields (EMF) generated by appliances near appliances being sold. Reaction of retailers; Amount of EMF generated by specific appliances; Impact of notices on consumers.

Reports that legislation mandating that insurance companies pay for the patient-care costs associated with federally approved cancer clinical trials is pending in the Pennsylvania Senate. Scope of the bill; Comments from legislative analysts; Insurance companies as the sole financier in developing new treatments.

Reports on the support for John Jones, head of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, concerning reforms for the liquor industry. Licensing functions of the agency; Need for a change in the system.

Focuses on Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge's tax cuts proposal. Spending plan; Other initiatives that are part of the budget; Beliefs concerning tax reductions.

Focuses on the tourism marketing campaign of Pennsylvania state's Office of Travel and Tourism. Criticisms against the slogan to be used; Reaction of public and private tourism agencies; Primary goal of the tourism industry.

Reports on the results of a survey on the members of the Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Optimism of accountant members about the state's economic health.

Reports that the time limit for persons owing taxes is running out. Deadline date for payment of taxes; Information on the amnesty program from the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue; Amount of money collected since initiation of program; Comments from Revenue Department spokeswoman Deb Snyder.

Reports that Democrats in the state House have resurrected their attempts to raise the minimum wage in Pennsylvania. Reasons; Outline of proposed legislation; Response to focus on Pennsylvania; Comments from Fred Sembach, executive legislative director, Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry.

Focuses on the proposal by Democrat Representative Harry Readshaw to move up the date of the presidential primary elections of Pennsylvania. Features of the Readshaw bill; Economic benefit of early presidential primary elections for Pennsylvania; Remarks on the economic clout of Pennsylvania by Readshaw.

Reports that David Richardson has proposed a legislation that would establish a panel to study slavery. Recommendation of the panel on whether reparations should be paid to the descendants of slaves.

Presents an overview of Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge's state spending plan. Proposed cuts in business taxes; Tax incentives; Proposals to revamp the Department of Environmental Resources; Need to attract business enterprises to locate in Pennsylvania.

Reports on legislative developments regarding riverboat gambling in Pennsylvania as of March 1994. State Representative Frank Gigliotti's support for riverboat gambling; Opponents' contention that riverboat gambling would negatively affect the state's moral fabric; Governor Tom Ridge's views on the issue.

Highlights Governor Tom Ridge's inaugural speech in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Balance between the preservation of natural resources and the economic realities of competition; Problems at the Department of Environmental Resources (DER); Division of the DER.

Discusses developments in proposals to privatize liquor sales in Pennsylvania (Pa.). Support for privatization from Governor Tom Ridge; Alcoholic beverage control under the Pennsylvania Liquor Code; Senator Stewart Greenleaf's proposal to permit the sale of wine in grocery and convenience stores; Opponents to privatization among unions representing state-store employees.

Reports on the conflict among Pennsylvania state officials and legislators regarding workers' compensation regulations. Reduction of premiums by capping medical fees; Comments from Senate Minority Leader Robert J. Mellow.

Reports on the victory of Tom Ridge in the 1994 gubernatorial elections in Pennsylvania. Implications for the business community; Ridge's support for small businesses in Pennsylvania; Proposals designed to improve the state's business climate; Expectations from Ridge.

Reports on the Pennsylvania House of Representative's approval of a resolution aimed at curbing federal influence on the state. Aim of strengthening the state's autonomy within the federal framework; Representative Ron Gamble's disappointment with the federal government's heavy-handed interference in the daily operations of state government; Proposed amendment.

Reports on the consequences of anti-smoking legislations on the tobacco industry of Pennsylvania. Smoking ban in specific areas; Anti-smoking bills sponsored by Representative Peter Daley; Contribution of cigarette taxes to government funds; Effect of the anti-smoking fervor on tobacco farmers, manufacturers and vendors; Health-care costs associated with smoking-related diseases.

Reports on Representative Allen Kukovich's bill on plant-closing notification. Federal law on plant-closing; Remarks from Representative Scot Chadwick; Workers affected by the law on plant-closings passed in 1990.

Reports on Pennsylvania Governor Robert P. Casey's legislative proposals to regulate the life insurance industry. Imposing fines on Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. for misleading marketing and sales practices; Life insurance companies' tax burdens from annuities; Ordering life insurers in Pennsylvania to conduct reviews of sales and marketing practices.