Sinkhole risk in Greenup County, KY: 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: 1%
At or near the surface: 1%
Buried under cover: 0%

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 3 of Greenup County's 344 square miles on soluble rock, 3 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 35,273 residents (102 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 513 map points about 0.8 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Counties around Greenup County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Fleming County, KY, about 44 miles west. 2 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band; the ground changes quickly around here.

Scioto County, OH 18 mi north · 0% at surface
Carter County, KY 18 mi south · 9% at surface
Boyd County, KY 20 mi southeast · 0% at surface
Lawrence County, OH 23 mi east · 0% at surface
Lewis County, KY 24 mi west · 22% at surface
Elliott County, KY 32 mi south · 1% at surface

The rock underneath

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Breathitt Formation, lower part (shale), Pennsylvanian in age, covering about 1% of the county.

Against the rest of Kentucky

Greenup County ranks 89 of 120 in Kentucky for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 55% of US counties on that measure.