SinkholeOdds

Sinkhole risk in Erie County, OH: 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
37%
At or near the surface
under 1%
Buried under cover
36%

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 93 of Erie County's 251 square miles on soluble rock, 2 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 73,841 residents (294 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 243 map points about 1.0 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Worth reading for this county: why gypsum and salt move faster than limestone, and why the 36% under cover still counts.

Counties around Erie County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Monroe County, MI, about 59 miles northwest. 1 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 Delaware Limestone (limestone), Devonian in age, covering about 14% of the county. Next is the Columbus Limestone at 12%.

The county also lies over the Michigan Basin; Ohio Basin; Appalachian Basin, a deep salt or gypsum basin. Deep beds rarely cause surface collapse on their own, but wells and mining into them have.

Against the rest of Ohio

Erie County ranks 11 of 88 in Ohio for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 54% of US counties on that measure.