Owner moving ahead on landfill proposal

ADAMS RUN — Wilbur Jones spent much of his childhood hunting in the woods in southwestern Charleston County.

Jones, now in his 60s, is one of many residents and landowners in the rural community off U.S. Highway 17 near Parkers Ferry Road fighting to stop a private company from building a landfill for construction waste in the area. He wants to protect the fragile, low-lying environment for future generations.

The residents also are concerned that if Tre Sheppard of Sheppard Construction in Mount Pleasant is allowed to build the landfill, the door will open for Charleston County to build a landfill for household waste on a tract of land it owns adjacent to Sheppard's property.

Sheppard plans to submit an ap-

plication to Charleston County on Monday to change the zoning of his 300-acre parcel of land so he can

plication to Charleston County on Monday to change the zoning of his 300-acre parcel of land so he can move forward with building the landfill. His project wouldn't be permitted under the property's current agricultural zoning.

Sheppard said he's concerned about the environment and plans to build a landfill that's as environmentally friendly as possible. He also said he plans to plant a buffer of trees around the landfill so that it won't be seen from roads or neighboring property. And he'll continue to take measures to protect an 18th-century black cemetery that sits on the edge of his property.

Jones, whose family owns about 150 acres of land in Adams Run, said he's concerned toxins from the landfill will contaminate the groundwater and residents' wells. In the rural corner of the county, Jones said, "If you don't have wells, you don't have water."

Daniel Pennick, director of Charleston County's planning department, said the county Planning Commission will consider Sheppard's application at its Jan. 12 meeting. Sheppard also will have to apply for an amendment to the county's comprehensive plan, a 10-year plan for managing growth and development, Pennick said. The county then will hold a public hearing on the project in early February, he said.

Lee Pye, who lives adjacent to Sheppard's property, has been fighting against Sheppard's proposed landfill for years. She has stacks of documents on the project and doesn't want a 200-foot pile of construction waste near the edge of her rural property.

Pye and Maggie Ridge, another area resident, said Sheppard's site is on a fault line, surrounded by wetlands and close to the Edisto River and the fragile environment of the ACE Basin. It's simply not a suitable site for a landfill, they said.

Sheppard said he plans to take numerous precautions to make sure the landfill doesn't harm the natural area.

The landfill won't be lined, he said, but all of the construction waste and other debris will be placed on a moving belt, and metal and other items that could harm the environment will be pulled out before the load goes into the ground.

Sheppard said he won't allow lead paint or asbestos to be disposed of in the landfill. The site is high enough so it won't contaminate the groundwater, and he'll dig ground-monitoring wells so groundwater can be monitored regularly, he added.

"This is going to be cutting-edge for this type of facility," he said. And it will bring 40 jobs to the community.

A construction-waste landfill is desperately needed, he said, because the county stopped taking construction waste from contractors at the Bees Ferry Landfill on July 1. The nearest private landfill is 30 miles away, he said.

Sheppard also said that he's trying to be a good neighbor.

He will allow people access, through his property, to a 3-acre 18th-century black cemetery, which once was part of the property he owns but has been deeded to Greater St. Mark AME Church. The church has a key to a lock on a gate and can give the key to people who want to visit their ancestors' gravesites, he said.

He also said he's held five community meeting to address neighbors' concerns. He's aware many residents are opposed to a landfill being built in the area. Sheppard said he invited representatives from the state Department of Health and Environmental Control to answer neighbors' questions. But the representatives left early after being confronted by residents who said DHEC's regulations weren't strong enough, Sheppard said.

College of Charleston biology professor Phil Dustan, an ecologist who supports recycling over building landfills, said he's not familiar with Sheppard's proposal. But he's concerned about an unlined construction-waste landfill being built in the low-lying area. "It's crazy," he said of Sheppard's plan.

Rusty metal could leak chromium into the groundwater, he said. And treated lumber will release toxins. "All of that area is connected by water," he said.

Gregg Varner, Charleston County's solid waste director, said the county owns property adjacent to Sheppard's land that it bought for a future landfill. The county's current landfill on Bees Ferry Road could be full as early as 2024, Varner said.

The property in Adams Run "will be considered for a landfill when the time comes," he said.

Adams Run residents are worried about the impact two landfills would have on their community.

Lee Pye's son, Justin Pye, said, "I agree there's no good site for a landfill. But come on, there has to be someplace better than this."

Reach Diane Knich at 937-5491 or dknich@postandcourier.com.