Sinkhole risk in Worth 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: 80%
At or near the surface: 0%
Buried under cover: 80%

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 212 of Worth County's 267 square miles on soluble rock. With about 1,872 residents (7 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 367 map points about 0.9 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 why the 80% under cover still counts.

Counties around Worth County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Jackson County, MO, about 102 miles south. 6 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band, so this is a regional pattern rather than a local quirk.

Gentry County, MO 19 mi south · 0% at surface
Ringgold County, IA 20 mi northeast · 0% at surface
Taylor County, IA 23 mi northwest · 0% at surface
Harrison County, MO 24 mi east · 0% at surface
Nodaway County, MO 26 mi west · 0% at surface
Decatur County, IA 38 mi northeast · 0% at surface

The rock underneath

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Lansing Group (shale), Late Pennsylvanian-Upper Series-Missourian Stage in age, covering about 45% of the county. Next is the Kansas City Group at 19%.

The county also lies over the Forest City 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 Missouri

Worth County ranks 115 of 115 in Missouri for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 0% of US counties on that measure.