Sinkhole risk in Macon County, AL: 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: 8%
At or near the surface: 8%
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 48 of Macon County's 609 square miles on soluble rock, 48 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 18,159 residents (30 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 280 map points about 1.5 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Worth reading for this county: how these percentages are measured, and the warning signs that apply anywhere.

Counties around Macon County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Talladega County, AL, about 73 miles north. 1 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band; the ground changes quickly around here.

Bullock County, AL 20 mi south · 31% at surface
Lee County, AL 25 mi northeast · 0% at surface
Elmore County, AL 30 mi northwest · 0% at surface
Russell County, AL 30 mi east · 3% at surface
Montgomery County, AL 32 mi southwest · 49% at surface
Tallapoosa County, AL 33 mi north · 0% at surface

The rock underneath

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Selma Group; Mooreville Chalk (carbonate), Cretaceous in age, covering about 8% of the county.

Against the rest of Alabama

Macon County ranks 40 of 67 in Alabama for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 66% of US counties on that measure.