Frequently Asked Questions

Why is a new landfill necessary?
Scotland County generates an average of 20,000 tons of municipal solid waste annually. In the coming years, it will become increasingly difficult to continue shipping Scotland County waste to other counties as disposal sites become limited and transportation costs rise.

There would be those that say that Scotland County does not need to build a landfill for their own waste but that the county could continue to utilize out-of-county private facilities. However, all facilities have a limited permitted capacity and may be unable to accept waste from Scotland County or they may reach total capacity within a short period of time. Then Scotland County and others in the region may be unable to secure reasonably priced, local disposal services.

If the County could afford to build a landfill by itself, it would be far more expensive and will not provide the income, savings and benefits as one in partnership with Waste Management of Carolinas Inc.

What kind of waste will the new landfill accept?
The proposed landfill would accept only residential and commercial solid waste, such as organic waste, paper, plastic, glass, and metals. It would not accept hazardous, radioactive or infectious waste materials.

If approved, when would it open?
It would open in approximately five years.

Why will it take so long to open the new landfill?
Siting a new landfill is a complex process that requires permits from several local, state and federal agencies. The complete process could take approximately three to five years.

How much land would a new landfill use?
Scotland County has optioned approximately 2,000 acres for the entire facility, but less than 400 acres will be used for landfill operations. The balance of the land will be used for buffers, borrow areas and operations.

How much waste would it accept?
The new modern landfill will be permitted to accept up to 5,000 tons per day from North Carolina plus five additional states.

Where would the waste come from?
Waste will come from local businesses and residents in Scotland County. Additionally, the facility will accept waste from a six state service area. Due to the high cost of design, permitting, construction and operation of an environmentally safe landfill, to be economically feasible, larger volumes of waste must be accepted. As a result we now have fewer, larger, regional landfills to dispose of our waste in an environmentally sound fashion.

Will the landfill be environmentally safe?
The facility will be designed and built to meet or exceed environmental safety standards of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the North Carolina Department of Environmental and Natural Resources. Federal and state regulations mandate that these landfills have protective liners, liquid collection systems, surface water management, groundwater monitoring, advanced technology to manage methane, and final caps along with long-term monitoring of the facility after closure.

How much traffic will the new landfill create?
The anticipated traffic into the facility (at full capacity) is expected to be approximately 250 vehicles per day.