Sinkhole risk in Guadalupe County, NM: 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: 14%
At or near the surface: 14%
Buried under cover: 0%

The next step for one property

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

That works out to roughly 421 of Guadalupe County's 3,030 square miles on soluble rock, 421 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 4,385 residents (1 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 296 map points about 3.2 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Counties around Guadalupe County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Eddy County, NM, about 169 miles south. 1 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band; the ground changes quickly around here.

San Miguel County, NM 42 mi north · 28% at surface
De Baca County, NM 42 mi southeast · 23% at surface
Torrance County, NM 66 mi west · 28% at surface
Quay County, NM 72 mi east · 4% at surface
Mora County, NM 77 mi north · 19% at surface
Santa Fe County, NM 80 mi northwest · 18% at surface

The rock underneath

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Artesia Group (fine-grained mixed clastic), Permian in age, covering about 7% of the county. Next is the San Andres Formation at 6%.

7% of the county sits on gypsum or salt, which dissolves in years rather than millennia. That share matters more than its size suggests.

The county also lies over the Permian Basin, Anadarko Basin,Dalhart Basin, Palo Duro 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 New Mexico

Guadalupe County ranks 16 of 33 in New Mexico for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 71% of US counties on that measure.