( CNN ) -- When a sinkhole gobbled up a large rental condo at a resort complex in Clermont , Florida , this week , I was n't particularly surprised . Hundreds of sinkholes form every year in Florida . They really are not that unusual . But it is surprising how little we know about them and how much bad sinkhole policy there is in the state . Sinkholes are natural phenomena that form when limestone dissolves bedrock and the overlying land surface collapses . This is a problem in a state whose population has doubled every 20 years or so in recent decades . For a time , all homes in Florida were required to have sinkhole coverage . But the state legislature passed insurance reforms in 2011 . Now , insurance companies must offer sinkhole insurance , but if you are in a high-risk zone , you can easily be turned down for coverage after a rudimentary inspection . When I tried to get sinkhole insurance for my 1961 concrete block ranch home near Tampa , I was told I needed to get an inspection . I paid $ 50 , and someone came and walked around the house and briefly came inside . I was then told by my insurance company that my home was ineligible for sinkhole coverage . The explanation : There were cracks in the 50-year-old plaster . Who does n't have cracks like that in an old home ? In February , a sinkhole opened under a home in Seffner , causing the death of a resident , the only known fatality from a sinkhole collapse in Florida in modern history . This home had passed the same inspection that my home failed . It 's not clear why . Sinkholes have affected property values in neighborhoods across Florida : Few want to buy into a neighborhood where there have been sinkholes . Some have lost more than 70 % of their investment , and many have walked away from mortgages . Florida has lax building standards when it comes to sinkholes . Home builders are not required to do detailed assessments of property to assess sinkhole risk , and because telltale signs are out of sight , under the earth , unsuspecting homeowners can buy into an area without knowing that they may be heading for trouble . There are also few planning rules for building in sinkhole-prone areas . Local governments are happy to gain the taxes from expansive building booms but are unwilling to limit development in high-risk areas or even require investigations where there is risk . In the face of all this , lawyers have happily stepped into the breach . If you travel across Florida , you will see many billboards advertising legal services to those who are impacted by sinkholes and want what they feel is just compensation . In fact , due to vagaries of law and science , a sinkhole industrial complex has evolved that includes those lawyers , plus geologists and engineers . While the state 's Division of Financial Services does provide helpful advice about what to do if you have a sinkhole , homeowners often have to dive into this expensive world to try to understand what to do if they have a sinkhole on their property . Surprisingly , the state has not seriously invested in sinkhole science . Although the Florida Geological Survey does provide some key information , there is no clear coordinated research effort on Florida karst landscapes , the landscapes that foster sinkholes . A well-funded sinkhole research institute at the University of Central Florida was founded after a huge sinkhole opened in Winter Park in 1981 , but it was defunded a decade later . The state has not reinvested in comprehensive sinkhole or karst research in any thoughtful or meaningful way since then . Most of the key publications published by the state on sinkholes and other types of karst features in the state date back at least a generation . The state did recently receive a federal grant to study Florida 's vulnerability to sinkholes , but there does not seem to be any clear long-term research plan to address the broad problems associated with the region 's unique geology . Florida is failing its citizens in sinkhole science and policy . It is time for the state to get serious about trying to understand this vexing problem . It is also time for policy makers to take another look at insurance , building codes and land use rules , and it 's time to rebuild a Florida sinkhole research institute . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Robert Brinkmann .
Robert Brinkmann : Florida sinkholes all too common , but state 's policy on them terrible . He says recent law makes it easier for insurers to deny homeowners sinkhole coverage . He says builders are n't required to check for sinkholes , and there are few planning rules . Brinkmann : State should rethink regulations and land use , revive sinkhole research institute .