Sinkhole risk in Tulsa County, OK: 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: 9%
At or near the surface: 9%
Buried under cover: 0%

What this means before you buy

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

That works out to roughly 54 of Tulsa County's 570 square miles on soluble rock, 54 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 693,514 residents (1,216 per square mile), most of the county is built up, so a mapped unit is likely to sit under somebody's street. The figures come from 524 map points about 1.0 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Counties around Tulsa County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Cherokee County, OK, about 55 miles east. 3 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band; the ground changes quickly around here.

Rogers County, OK 26 mi northeast · 14% at surface
Wagoner County, OK 26 mi southeast · 2% at surface
Creek County, OK 29 mi southwest · 15% at surface
Okmulgee County, OK 33 mi south · under 1% at surface
Washington County, OK 40 mi north · 9% at surface
Mayes County, OK 41 mi east · 48% at surface

What Tulsa County is built on

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Oolagah Formation (limestone), Middle Pennsylvanian in age, covering about 5% of the county. Next is the Nellie Bly Formation and Hogshooter Limestone at 4%.

Against the rest of Oklahoma

Tulsa County ranks 47 of 77 in Oklahoma for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 67% of US counties on that measure.