Sinkhole risk in Buchanan County, VA: No soluble rock mapped

What to do about a house in Buchanan County

No soluble bedrock is mapped here, so natural sinkholes are unlikely. Collapses from broken pipes or old mines are a separate risk.

Across 503 square miles, under one square mile of Buchanan County maps onto soluble rock. With about 18,632 residents (37 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 473 map points about 1.0 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 Buchanan County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Russell County, VA, about 23 miles south, close enough that the same rock may run under the county line. 4 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band, so this is a regional pattern rather than a local quirk.

• Dickenson County, VA 19 mi southwest · 0% at surface
• McDowell County, WV 22 mi east · 0% at surface
• Russell County, VA 23 mi south · 64% at surface
• Pike County, KY 25 mi northwest · under 1% at surface
• Tazewell County, VA 28 mi east · 43% at surface
• Mingo County, WV 32 mi north · 0% at surface

Against the rest of Virginia

Buchanan County ranks 101 of 133 in Virginia for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 0% of US counties on that measure.

• Lexington city 100%
• Salem city 100%
• Roanoke city 98%
• Winchester city 90%
• Bristol city 89%