Southwest Missouri
Old mine workings raise ground-stability questions
In historic mining areas, old underground workings and shafts can raise subsidence and open-shaft questions worth checking before buying or building.
Jasper County sits at the center of an old lead and zinc mining region. For decades, miners dug under the ground around Joplin and Webb City. The state says there are more than 2,500 known lead and zinc mine shafts in the wider area. When that mining stopped, it left behind old workings and shafts beneath parts of the county.
In old mining ground, two fair questions come up before you buy land or build: Could the ground sink? Are there old shafts nearby? This is more likely near the edges of town, where mining was busy. The state lists ground sinking (called subsidence) and dangerous shaft openings as public safety concerns, and it has worked to close risky shafts in the Jasper and Newton county area.
This is not a reason to avoid the area. It is a reason to check. The Missouri Geological Survey, part of the Department of Natural Resources, keeps mine and geology maps. Their GeoSTRAT tool and Abandoned Mine Lands Viewer let you look up mines, and you can email Ask a Geologist. Keep in mind the state notes its maps do not show every mining site, so a clear map is not a full guarantee.
References
Where this fits: this note belongs to Jasper County. See every local note for the county on its page.