Sinkhole risk in Kane County, IL: 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: 29%
At or near the surface: 0%
Buried under cover: 29%

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 152 of Kane County's 519 square miles on soluble rock. With about 520,997 residents (1,003 per square mile), most of the county is built up, so a mapped unit is likely to sit under somebody's street. The figures come from 373 map points about 1.2 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Worth reading for this county: why the 29% under cover still counts, and how these percentages are measured.

Counties around Kane County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Jo Daviess County, IL, about 96 miles west. 6 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band, so this is a regional pattern rather than a local quirk.

DeKalb County, IL 18 mi west · 0% at surface
DuPage County, IL 19 mi east · 0% at surface
Kendall County, IL 24 mi south · 2% at surface
McHenry County, IL 27 mi north · 0% at surface
Boone County, IL 33 mi northwest · 0% at surface
Lake County, IL 36 mi northeast · 0% at surface

The rock underneath

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Silurian (dolostone (dolomite)), Silurian in age, covering about 28% of the county. Next is the Galena-Platteville Groups at 1%.

Against the rest of Illinois

Kane County ranks 62 of 102 in Illinois for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 0% of US counties on that measure.