Sinkhole risk in Bates County, MO: Pockets of it

Pockets of it

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

On soluble rock: 45%
At or near the surface: 45%
Buried under cover: 0%

What to do about a house in Bates County

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 374 of Bates County's 837 square miles on soluble rock, 374 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 16,394 residents (20 per square mile), much of the land is open, and the mapped rock may sit far from where people actually live. The figures come from 369 map points about 1.5 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Two things to read before deciding: the signs to look for and how an inspection works, and how these percentages are measured.

Counties around Bates County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Cass County, MO, about 27 miles north, close enough that the same rock may run under the county line. 2 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band; the ground changes quickly around here.

Cass County, MO 27 mi north · 72% at surface
Linn County, KS 28 mi west · 69% at surface
Vernon County, MO 28 mi south · 9% at surface
Henry County, MO 31 mi east · 18% at surface
St. Clair County, MO 34 mi southeast · 43% at surface
Miami County, KS 34 mi northwest · 87% at surface

The rock underneath

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Marmaton Group (limestone), Middle Pennsylvanian-Middle Series-Desmonian Stage in age, covering about 42% of the county. Next is the Kansas City Group at 3%.

Against the rest of Missouri

Bates County ranks 58 of 115 in Missouri for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 86% of US counties on that measure.