Za določitev vodovarstvenih območij ter za načrtovanje rabe prostora v zaledju zajetih kraških izvirov in vrtin se praviloma uporablja koncept kartiranja ranljivosti kraških vodonosnikov. Obstaja več med seboj različnih metodologij kartiranja ranljivosti kraških vodonosnikov in pregled znanstvene literature kaže na določene razlike v definiciji pojma ranljivosti. Avtorja predlagata razlikovanje med pojmoma ranljivost in občutljivost kraških vodonosnikov, saj prvi vsebuje več informacij, ki jih potrebujemo za primerno varovanje. Pri razlagi pojmov se avtorja opirata na konceptualna The concept of karst aquifer vulnerability mapping is commonly used for the determination of water protection zones and planning of land use in the background of the captured karst sources and wells. Several different methodologies for karst aquifer vulnerability mapping exist and the examination of scientific literature shows considerable variations in the definition of the term vulnerability. The authors suggest the distinction between the terms vulnerability and sensitivity of karst aquifers, since the former includes more information, which are required for efficient protection. The interpretation of the applied terms is founded on the conceptual background of the environmental vulnerability studies, which are declared with the Slovene 1993 Environmental Protection Act.