Sinkhole risk in Vernon County, MO: 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%

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 77 of Vernon County's 826 square miles on soluble rock, 77 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 19,787 residents (24 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 378 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 Vernon County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Bourbon County, KS, about 28 miles west, close enough that the same rock may run under the county line. 1 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band; the ground changes quickly around here.

Barton County, MO 24 mi south · 11% at surface
Bourbon County, KS 28 mi west · 68% at surface
Cedar County, MO 28 mi east · 54% at surface
Bates County, MO 28 mi north · 45% at surface
St. Clair County, MO 34 mi northeast · 43% at surface
Crawford County, KS 37 mi southwest · 56% at surface

What Vernon County is built on

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Marmaton Group (limestone), Middle Pennsylvanian-Middle Series-Desmonian Stage in age, covering about 9% of the county. Next is the Osagean Series at under 1%.

Against the rest of Missouri

Vernon County ranks 70 of 115 in Missouri for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 67% of US counties on that measure.