Sinkhole risk in Lincoln 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: 10%
At or near the surface: 10%
Buried under cover: 0%

What to do about a house in Lincoln County

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

That works out to roughly 29 of Lincoln County's 296 square miles on soluble rock, 29 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 97,611 residents (330 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 313 map points about 1.0 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Counties around Lincoln County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Chesterfield County, SC, about 84 miles southeast. 3 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band; the ground changes quickly around here.

Catawba County, NC 12 mi north · 5% at surface
Gaston County, NC 14 mi south · 6% at surface
Cleveland County, NC 21 mi southwest · 2% at surface
Mecklenburg County, NC 28 mi southeast · 0% at surface
Iredell County, NC 30 mi northeast · 0% at surface
Alexander County, NC 30 mi north · 0% at surface

Which formation it is

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Blacksburg Formation (schist), Cambrian/Late Proterozoic in age, covering about 10% of the county.

Against the rest of North Carolina

Lincoln County ranks 40 of 100 in North Carolina for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 68% of US counties on that measure.