Sinkhole risk in Richland County, WI: Pockets of it

Pockets of it

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

On soluble rock: 41%
At or near the surface: 41%
Buried under cover: 0%

What to do about a house in Richland 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 239 of Richland County's 586 square miles on soluble rock, 239 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 17,123 residents (29 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 361 map points about 1.3 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Counties around Richland County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Vernon County, WI, about 25 miles northwest, close enough that the same rock may run under the county line. 2 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band; the ground changes quickly around here.

Vernon County, WI 25 mi northwest · 63% at surface
Sauk County, WI 25 mi east · 16% at surface
Crawford County, WI 27 mi west · 71% at surface
Iowa County, WI 30 mi southeast · 77% at surface
Grant County, WI 37 mi south · 84% at surface
Monroe County, WI 40 mi north · 16% at surface

Which formation it is

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Prairie du Chien Group (shale), Lower Ordovician in age, covering about 41% of the county.

Against the rest of Wisconsin

Richland County ranks 6 of 72 in Wisconsin for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 84% of US counties on that measure.