Sinkhole risk in Benton County, MS: Mostly deep or small

Mostly deep or small

Some soluble rock, mostly deeply buried or in a small share of the county.

On soluble rock: 2%
At or near the surface: 2%
Buried under cover: 0%

What this means before you buy

Sinkholes are uncommon here; watch for new depressions after heavy rain or leaking pipes.

That works out to roughly 7 of Benton County's 407 square miles on soluble rock, 7 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 7,566 residents (19 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 292 map points about 1.2 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Worth reading for this county: how these percentages are measured, and the warning signs that apply anywhere.

Counties around Benton County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Tippah County, MS, about 16 miles east, close enough that the same rock may run under the county line. 3 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band; the ground changes quickly around here.

Tippah County, MS 16 mi east · 60% at surface
Marshall County, MS 18 mi west · 1% at surface
Union County, MS 25 mi southeast · 75% at surface
Fayette County, TN 29 mi northwest · 0% at surface
Hardeman County, TN 31 mi northeast · 5% at surface
Lafayette County, MS 35 mi southwest · 1% at surface

What Benton County is built on

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Porters Creek formation (clay or mud), Paleocene in age, covering about 2% of the county.

Against the rest of Mississippi

Benton County ranks 30 of 82 in Mississippi for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 57% of US counties on that measure.