Neighbors from Brown Grove, a historically African American community in Hanover County, attended a town hall meeting March 10 to express their concerns over the proposed expansion of the Ashcake Road Landfill. Jeff S. Stoneman, a member of the Hanover County Board of Supervisors representing the Beaverdam District, hosted the meeting at the Hanover County Administration Building for constituents to share their concerns.

The landfill, owned by Nick Moore, is located east of Interstate 95 and north of the Hanover County Municipal Airport. In 2017, the Hanover County Planning Commission approved Moore’s application to use the land for borrow pits, which provide dirt and gravel for construction projects. However, as the landfill nears capacity, Moore applied in 2022 to convert the borrow pits into landfill space. The planning commission rejected the application. Now, the Ashcake Road Landfill is seeking to expand again.

Neighbors are concerned that the expansion could lead to significant environmental impacts. Their worries stem from the landfill’s ongoing noncompliance with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations. Violations were first identified in October 2023, and the landfill has been in noncompliance since then.

The most cited violations are related to the Clean Water Act (CWA), specifically exceeding levels of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and total suspended solids (TSS). According to the EPA, high BOD levels cause aquatic organisms to become stressed, suffocate, and die, while elevated TSS levels can make drinking water unpalatable and pose risks to people not accustomed to such water.

Bonnica Cotman, founder and leader of the Brown Grove Preservation Group, attended the meeting to oppose the landfill expansion. After the group spoke out against similar plans in 2022, Cotman did not expect to be fighting the same issue again.

“You have people in a community who have long felt that they did not have a voice because anytime something happens to Black communities for speaking up—like the burning of churches or homes,” Cotman said. “People may have opinions, but they’re scared to speak up because they’re not sure how this is going to play out.”

Moore, as required by the Planning Commission, sent a notice to landowners sharing a property line with the landfill about a community meeting scheduled for Nov. 6, 2024. Cotman, despite living in close proximity to the landfill, said she never received a notice. A second notice for a Feb. 24, 2025, meeting was sent to additional nearby residents, many of whom were hearing about the project for the first time, Cotman said.

During the town hall, Supervisor Stoneman told attendees that he had not made a decision on the issue and would remain undecided until the Planning Commission meeting on March 20.