User:Caver.adam/draft article on KKC

The Kentucky Karst Conservancy (KKC) is an organization formed in 2012 to promote exploration, karst conservation, karst studies, and caver education in the state of Kentucky. The organization has promoted cave clean-ups, safety trainings, vertical climbing technique workshops, bat studies, and cave survey activities.

Organization
The KKC was formed as a representative organization managed by a Board of Directors. The bylaws establish that subsequent Boards of Directors will be elected by the active members of the organization. Only Lifetime members of the organization are eligible for a position on the Board of Directors.

Membership is divided into three main categories. Lifetime Members are full members of the organization, are eligible to hold a Board position, and are keyholders for conservancy properties. Subscription Members are members who are on a payment plan towards becoming a Lifetime Member, and until completion of their payments have the rights and responsibilities of an Annual Member. Annual Members are yearly members who have rights to claim association with the organization, vote on representation as determined by the bylaws, and have access to the conservation properties by borrowing a Lifetime Member's key.

Conservation Property
The KKC has acquired its first Conservation Property. The Big Bat Cave Preserve is a 3 acre preserve in Central Kentucky. The property is in a canyon and protects a sinking creek which sinks into the 13+ mile long Big Bat cave. The property also has a man-made entrance commonly referred to as the "Mushroom Entrance". While the property only covers a very small portion of the cave, it is situated in a critical location. At the bottom of the canyon the surface creek sinks into a large sinkhole that used to be part of a longer above-ground creek. This sinking creek creates a series of underground waterfalls in the cave which are quite spectacular to behold. It is also an important reason to protect this land from contamination and pollution.