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22 <br /> The long, shared southern border with the old landfill limits the viable uses for our parcel and <br /> the neighboring parcels owned by Orange County. There is a long history of controversy <br /> between the county landfill on Eubanks Rd and its neighbors.12 The most publicized of these <br /> issues concerns the newer portion of the landfill south of Eubanks Rd near the Rogers Road <br /> community. In a 2011 article supported by the Fund for Investigative Journalism, Rebekah Cowel <br /> reported on that community. <br /> Last year, the Orange County Health Department tested the community's drinking water <br /> wells and reported that nine of the 11 wells were contaminated and did not meet <br /> federal drinking water standards. Contaminants found include the carcinogen vinyl <br /> chloride, which was detected at levels 1,066 times higher than DENR's acceptable level. <br /> Long-term exposure to vinyl chloride can lead to "rare cancer of the liver," according to <br /> the Environmental Protection Agency. Benzene was detected at six times higher than <br /> acceptable levels. Long-term exposure can lead to anemia, a decrease in blood platelets <br /> and increased risk of cancer. Other contaminants included tetrachlorethylene and <br /> dichlorethene. <br /> Significantly, the portion of the landfill near the Rogers Road community is the newer, more <br /> tightly regulated and properly-lined portion of the landfill. Our parcel, and those nearby, share a <br /> border with the portion of a landfill built before 1983. According to the same article, such older <br /> landfills are "'preregulatory," essentially unlined dumps whose contents often leak into the soil <br /> and groundwater."13 According to the Orange County Comprehensive Plan "[m]ethane from the <br /> closed municipal solid waste landfill is passively vented" and the closed area still "generates a <br /> biogas that is vented to the atmosphere" (p. 8-21). <br /> While problematic for many types of community and uses, our intended proposal for the <br /> property isn't affected by these issues or operations. Based on email correspondence with <br /> Robert Williams and Bruce Woody, Orange County's Director and Assistant Director of Solid <br /> Waste, we expect no conflicts with our neighbors to the south. <br /> To our west is the 1,000+ acre Blackwood Division of Duke Forest. The portion of Duke Forest <br /> adjacent to our 10-acre parcel is used for research and is intentionally off limits to the public. <br /> According to Duke Forest Supervisor Tom Craven, their primary concern has been the <br /> 12 https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/fighting-environmental-racism-in-north-carolina; <br /> https://www.renacommunitycenter.com/the-landfill; <br /> https:Hmediahub.unc.edu/rowers-road-neighborhoods-fight-environmental-justice/; <br /> https:Hhpdp.unc.edu/2011/07/landfill-air-pollution-may-be-as-unhealthy-as-it-is-unpleasant-study-finds; <br /> httl2s:Hstonewalls.substack.com/12/areenetract <br /> 13 https:Hindyweek.com/news/northcarolina/digginci-deeper/ <br /> 15 <br />