Report Notes Boring Company Construction Could Cause Sinkholes

The Boring Company’s construction on the Music City Loop tunnel could lead to sinkholes across Nashville, among other environmental dangers, according to a new report.

The Southern Environmental Law Center released the report Oct. 21, noting potential risks related to the construction as the company digs through layers of bedrock and limestone prone to sinkholes and caves. The report warns that tunneling could yield karst formations, via which acidic water can dissolve soluble bedrock like Tennessee limestone.

“These conditions create potentially severe karst-related tunneling challenges which, in previous (other than The Boring Company) projects in other areas, have included massive water or mud inflow and flooding, sinkholes and ground subsidence above the tunneling, and machine entrapment with ‘stuck’ [tunnel boring machines],” the report reads.

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Groundwater contamination could also come as a result of tunneling. The report notes a long history of soil contamination at the former Aladdin Industries facility on Murfreesboro Pike, with the facility having pushed arsenic, cadmium and lead deeper into the ground than otherwise. Tunneling under such contaminated soil could risk polluting Nashville’s groundwater, the report contends.

An environmental impact assessment released by The Boring Company in 2025 claims the company will “avoid tunnel boring in areas where karst development is identified.”

The Southern Environmental Law Center counters by noting this is not possible, as the tunnel's current route will require digging into limestone located beneath Browns Creek, Mill Creek and the Cumberland River. Boring's assessment features little details regarding what will be done if karst geology is encountered during the tunneling process, the center contends.

The Southern Environmental Law Center reports a "striking lack" of transparency surrounding the project, creating difficulty related to assessing potential environmental harms.

“A challenge in evaluating the potential for environmental impacts of this project is the scarcity of easily accessible, publicly available details,” reads the report.

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“Despite these significant concerns, The Boring Company has refused to share details about how they will mitigate the risks associated with tunneling under a major city.”

The report notes issues such as the hundreds of environmental violations and worker safety incidents related to the company’s underground tunnel project in Las Vegas.

As of publication time, The Boring Company had not responded to a request for comment on the report findings.

The release of the center's report comes as Boring prepares to tunnel underneath a foreclosed site located at Lafayette Street downtown, according to the Nashville Business Journal. Earlier this month, the company said via a blog post that a third tunnel boring machine will be launched in late October.

This article was first published by our sister publication, the Nashville Post.