Sinkhole risk in Atkinson County, GA: Pockets of it

Pockets of it

Soluble rock at the surface or under thin cover in part of the county.

On soluble rock: 100%
At or near the surface: 0%
Buried under cover: 100%

What this means before you buy

Check the parcel against your state survey sinkhole map, and ask for an inspection if cracks, depressions or sticking doors show up.

That works out to roughly 343 of Atkinson County's 343 square miles on soluble rock. With about 8,435 residents (25 per square mile), there is effectively nowhere in the county off the soluble rock, town or country. The figures come from 276 map points about 1.1 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Two things to read before deciding: why the 100% under cover still counts, and the signs to look for and how an inspection works.

Counties around Atkinson County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Hamilton County, FL, about 55 miles south. 6 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band, so this is a regional pattern rather than a local quirk.

Coffee County, GA 18 mi north · 0% at surface
Berrien County, GA 21 mi west · 3% at surface
Lanier County, GA 21 mi southwest · under 1% at surface
Clinch County, GA 28 mi south · 0% at surface
Bacon County, GA 31 mi northeast · 0% at surface
Irwin County, GA 32 mi northwest · 0% at surface

The rock underneath

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the "Hawthorn Formation" (sand), Miocene in age, covering about 100% of the county.

Against the rest of Georgia

Atkinson County ranks 76 of 159 in Georgia for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 0% of US counties on that measure.