Sinkhole risk in Jackson County, KS: 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: 25%
At or near the surface: 0%
Buried under cover: 25%

What to do about a house in Jackson County

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

That works out to roughly 165 of Jackson County's 656 square miles on soluble rock. With about 13,525 residents (21 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 346 map points about 1.4 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Counties around Jackson County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Johnson County, KS, about 64 miles southeast. 6 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band, so this is a regional pattern rather than a local quirk.

Jefferson County, KS 25 mi southeast · 0% at surface
Shawnee County, KS 26 mi south · 4% at surface
Atchison County, KS 27 mi east · 0% at surface
Nemaha County, KS 29 mi northwest · 0% at surface
Pottawatomie County, KS 29 mi west · 6% at surface
Brown County, KS 31 mi northeast · 0% at surface

What Jackson County is built on

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Admire Group (shale), Late Pennsylvanian in age, covering about 15% of the county. Next is the Council Grove Group at 10%.

Against the rest of Kansas

Jackson County ranks 99 of 105 in Kansas for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 0% of US counties on that measure.