Sinkhole risk in Henderson County, NC: 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: 3%
At or near the surface: 3%
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 12 of Henderson County's 373 square miles on soluble rock, 12 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 120,771 residents (324 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 567 map points about 0.8 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Counties around Henderson County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Cocke County, TN, about 54 miles northwest. 2 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band; the ground changes quickly around here.

Polk County, NC 18 mi east · 0% at surface
Buncombe County, NC 19 mi north · 3% at surface
Transylvania County, NC 21 mi southwest · 5% at surface
Greenville County, SC 31 mi south · 0% at surface
Rutherford County, NC 32 mi east · 0% at surface
Haywood County, NC 32 mi northwest · under 1% at surface

The rock underneath

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Rocks of Brevard Fault Zone (schist), Uncertain, possibly Permian or Devonian in age, covering about 3% of the county.

Against the rest of North Carolina

Henderson County ranks 53 of 100 in North Carolina for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 60% of US counties on that measure.