Sinkholes associated with natural processes are characteristic of bedrock types that are soluble in groundwater, primarily:
- Limestone and other carbonate rocks (such as dolomite), which dissolve slowly in acidic water, leading to karst landscapes with sinkholes formed by dissolution and collapse processes.
- Evaporite rocks , including gypsum and halite (salt deposits), which dissolve much more rapidly than carbonates, resulting in more frequent and often larger sinkholes due to faster subsurface erosion and mechanical weakening.
These soluble rocks allow groundwater to dissolve the bedrock, creating underground cavities that can collapse or cause subsidence at the surface, forming sinkholes
. In summary, sinkholes naturally occur in regions underlain by carbonate rocks (limestone, dolomite) and evaporite rocks (gypsum, salt) due to their solubility and the resulting karst processes
