Sinkhole risk in Kenosha County, WI: 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: 99%
At or near the surface: 0%
Buried under cover: 99%

What to do about a house in Kenosha County

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

That works out to roughly 268 of Kenosha County's 272 square miles on soluble rock. With about 168,754 residents (621 per square mile), there is effectively nowhere in the county off the soluble rock, town or country. The figures come from 366 map points about 0.9 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Two things to read before deciding: why the 99% under cover still counts, and how these percentages are measured.

Counties around Kenosha County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Muskegon County, MI, about 94 miles northeast. 6 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band, so this is a regional pattern rather than a local quirk.

Racine County, WI 14 mi north · 0% at surface
Milwaukee County, WI 22 mi north · 0% at surface
Lake County, IL 28 mi south · 0% at surface
Walworth County, WI 34 mi west · 0% at surface
McHenry County, IL 34 mi southwest · 0% at surface
Waukesha County, WI 37 mi northwest · 0% at surface

What Kenosha County is built on

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Silurian, undivided (dolostone (dolomite)), Silurian in age, covering about 92% of the county. Next is the Maquoketa Formation at 7%.

Against the rest of Wisconsin

Kenosha County ranks 43 of 72 in Wisconsin for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 0% of US counties on that measure.