Sinkhole risk in Reagan County, TX: Pockets of it

Pockets of it

Soluble rock at the surface or under thin cover in part of the county.

On soluble rock: 49%
At or near the surface: 49%
Buried under cover: 0%

What to do about a house in Reagan County

Check the parcel against your state survey sinkhole map, and ask for an inspection if cracks, depressions or sticking doors show up.

That works out to roughly 577 of Reagan County's 1,175 square miles on soluble rock, 577 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 3,139 residents (3 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 399 map points about 1.7 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Worth reading for this county: why gypsum and salt move faster than limestone, and the signs to look for and how an inspection works.

Counties around Reagan County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Coke County, TX, about 62 miles northeast. 6 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band, so this is a regional pattern rather than a local quirk.

Upton County, TX 31 mi west · 30% at surface
Irion County, TX 32 mi east · 65% at surface
Glasscock County, TX 34 mi north · 24% at surface
Sterling County, TX 42 mi northeast · 55% at surface
Midland County, TX 42 mi northwest · 16% at surface
Crockett County, TX 46 mi south · 83% at surface

The rock underneath

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Edwards Limestone (limestone), Early Cretaceous in age, covering about 39% of the county. Next is the Buda Limestone at 10%.

The county also lies over the Permian Basin, Anadarko Basin,Dalhart Basin, Palo Duro Basin, a deep salt or gypsum basin. Deep beds rarely cause surface collapse on their own, but wells and mining into them have.

Against the rest of Texas

Reagan County ranks 52 of 254 in Texas for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 87% of US counties on that measure.