Sinkhole risk in Butler 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: 44%
At or near the surface: 44%
Buried under cover: 0%

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 302 of Butler County's 695 square miles on soluble rock, 302 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 41,814 residents (60 per square mile), homes are spread across towns and farmland, and a mapped unit may or may not reach the developed parts. The figures come from 322 map points about 1.5 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Worth reading for this county: the signs to look for and how an inspection works, and how these percentages are measured.

Counties around Butler County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Ripley County, MO, about 27 miles west, close enough that the same rock may run under the county line. None of the 6 closest counties land in the same band, so Butler County stands out from its surroundings.

Clay County, AR 24 mi south · 0% at surface
Ripley County, MO 27 mi west · 95% at surface
Stoddard County, MO 27 mi east · 3% at surface
Wayne County, MO 27 mi north · 95% at surface
Carter County, MO 34 mi northwest · 100% at surface
Greene County, AR 42 mi south · 0% at surface

The rock underneath

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Roubidoux Formation (sandstone), Early Ordovician-Ibexian Series in age, covering about 36% of the county. Next is the Gasconade Dolomite at 8%.

Against the rest of Missouri

Butler County ranks 59 of 115 in Missouri for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 85% of US counties on that measure.