buckingham county landfill

ST RTE 640 W OF US RTE 15

The Buckingham County Landfill occupies eight acres, including a two-acre hazardous waste disposal area, near the town of Dillwyn. The primitive disposal operation involved emptying solvent and paint waste into a series of trenches, whereby the byproducts of evaporation, known as still bottoms, were buried and remain today. Crushed drums were placed in another trench where they remain today, as well. Investigation in 1992 showed that on-site groundwater wells were contaminated with very high levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Potential risks exist if people ingest or come into direct contact with this contaminated groundwater. An estimated 1,100 people use wells within three miles of the site and approximately 40 people live within a half mile of the site. A landfill cap was completed in 1998. A groundwater study was done also done in 1998, to design the long-term groundwater monitoring program, and the first round of sampling was completed in September 1998.