Sinkhole risk in Clermont County, OH: Pockets of it

Pockets of it

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

On soluble rock: 100%
At or near the surface: 0%
Buried under cover: 100%

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 453 of Clermont County's 453 square miles on soluble rock. With about 214,123 residents (473 per square mile), there is effectively nowhere in the county off the soluble rock, town or country. The figures come from 301 map points about 1.2 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Counties around Clermont County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Kenton County, KY, about 22 miles west, close enough that the same rock may run under the county line. 5 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band, so this is a regional pattern rather than a local quirk.

Campbell County, KY 14 mi southwest · 26% at surface
Brown County, OH 17 mi southeast · 9% at surface
Kenton County, KY 22 mi west · 59% at surface
Hamilton County, OH 23 mi northwest · 2% at surface
Bracken County, KY 26 mi south · 33% at surface
Warren County, OH 26 mi north · 0% at surface

What Clermont County is built on

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Grant Lake Limestone and Fairview Formation, Undivided (limestone), Ordovician in age, covering about 53% of the county. Next is the Kope Formation at 16%.

Against the rest of Ohio

Clermont County ranks 20 of 88 in Ohio for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 0% of US counties on that measure.