Ozark County sits on karst, so springs, losing streams, and sinkholes shape the ground

Ozark County lies on soluble carbonate bedrock, the classic recipe for karst: caves, sinkholes, losing streams, and big springs where groundwater surfaces. The county’s spring-fed waters, including the cold flows that feed the North Fork River and Bryant Creek, are the visible outlets of that underground plumbing. For a buyer or builder the practical points are concrete. Surface water can vanish into the ground and resurface elsewhere, so a dry-looking draw may still drain a wide area, and a sinkhole can act as a direct pipe to the aquifer, which is why what goes into one can reach a spring or a downgradient well. The Missouri Geological Survey within DNR maps and explains karst features and is the place to start before assuming a parcel drains the way it looks. Treat sinkholes as plumbing connected to groundwater, not as low spots to fill.