SinkholeOdds

Sinkhole risk in Cavalier County, ND: 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
6%
At or near the surface
2%
Buried under cover
5%

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 92 of Cavalier County's 1,489 square miles on soluble rock, 24 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 3,567 residents (2 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 386 map points about 2.0 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Two things to read before deciding: how these percentages are measured, and the warning signs that apply anywhere.

Counties around Cavalier County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Boyd County, NE, about 406 miles south. 3 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band; the ground changes quickly around here.

The rock underneath

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Niobrara and Carlile Formations, Undivided (limestone), Cretaceous in age, covering about 6% of the county.

Against the rest of North Dakota

Cavalier County ranks 1 of 53 in North Dakota for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 57% of US counties on that measure.