FLORIDA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY


 Certificates of Authorization under Chapter 492 F.S. (geology) or Chapter 471
 F.S. (engineering) to practice in the State of Florida. Similarly the individual
 professional consultant who performs subsidence investigations and who signs
 and seals work for geological or engineering firms, or practicing independently,
 must be licensed to practice as either a Professional Engineer qualified in
 geology, or a Professional Geologist in the State of Florida. Professionals doing
 work only for their parent company and others employed as teachers or instructors
 also must comply with these licensing requirements if such work is to be
 submitted to a government agency for public record.

 b. The professional consultant should be expected to provide evidence of training
 and experience in identifying subsidence caused by sinkholes, expansive clays,
 organic-rich soils, slope stability, and other processes that cause subsidence.
 Appropriate training and expertise in the various subspecialties listed in these
 protocols should also be identified.

3. Professional Practice

 a. At the conclusion of the investigation the professional will render an opinion
 within a reasonable degree of scientific or engineering probability as to the
 causes) of the damage in a professionally signed and sealed report.

 b. It is not sufficient to simply rule out a sinkhole loss. The most reasonable cause
 of damage must be presented with supporting data.

 c. ASTM or other published standard methods should be utilized wherever possible
 as appropriate based on professional judgment (i.e. standard geologic and
 geophysical field methods).

4. Initial Data Gathering

 a. Background Data Collection To the extent possible, it is recommended that the
 following information be obtained in order to better design and execute a
 subsidence investigation.

 i. Regional / local geomorphology, areal extent of nearby geologic
 features, depth to competent rock, and lithologic, stratigraphic, and
 hydrogeologic characteristics of strata likely to be present at the
 site,

 ii. Site elevation, topography, and drainage features as observed on
 relevant USGS 1:24,000 topographic quadrangle maps of the
 vicinity, supplemented by smaller scale, more detailed of same if
 available,

 iii. Soil conditions as reported in the county soil survey,

 iv. Nearby historic sinkholes as available from the FGS sinkhole