Sinkhole risk in Greensville County, VA: 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: 2%
At or near the surface: 2%
Buried under cover: 0%

What to do about a house in Greensville County

Sinkholes are uncommon here; watch for new depressions after heavy rain or leaking pipes.

That works out to roughly 5 of Greensville County's 295 square miles on soluble rock, 5 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 11,150 residents (38 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 493 map points about 0.8 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 Greensville County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Hertford County, NC, about 39 miles southeast, close enough that the same rock may run under the county line. 1 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band; the ground changes quickly around here.

Emporia city, VA 2 mi northeast · 0% at surface
Brunswick County, VA 18 mi west · 0% at surface
Northampton County, NC 20 mi southeast · 34% at surface
Sussex County, VA 24 mi northeast · 14% at surface
Southampton County, VA 25 mi east · 21% at surface
Dinwiddie County, VA 27 mi north · under 1% at surface

Which formation it is

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Chesapeake Group (sand), Tertiary in age, covering about 2% of the county.

Against the rest of Virginia

Greensville County ranks 78 of 133 in Virginia for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 57% of US counties on that measure.