Cannon Mills Landfill

In a Charlotte metro area suburb, the 39-acre Cannon Mills Landfill was used for the disposal of commercial, industrial, and residential waste from 1908–1972. It represents one of more than 25 task orders Schnabel carried out as part of a three-year contract with the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NCDENR), Division of Waste Management, to provide environmental engineering services.

This task order involved a 51-acre site with the landfill. Cannon Mills (formerly Fieldcrest-Cannon and Pillowtex) and Atlantic American Properties originally owned and operated the property. A previous soil, sediment, and groundwater analysis indicated the presence of volatile organic compounds and leachable inorganic hazardous substances that exceeded the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Hazardous Waste Section’s soil-screening levels. Responsible for administering the Inactive Hazardous Sites Response Act of 1987, NCDENR selected Schnabel to provide environmental engineering services on a task order basis to investigate and mitigate hazardous conditions of pre-1983 landfills and, where necessary, provide potable water at various sites.

The three-part scope of work encompassed a Phase 1 site assessment and report, followed by Phase 2, a contaminant delineation investigation of soil, groundwater, and evaluation of above-ground vapors. Phase 3, which addressed specific concerns identified in Phase 2, included the installation of 20 probes to evaluate and monitor subsurface gas. Our mitigation plan and design detailed specific remedial actions. Among them were the grading of 62,000 cubic yards of waste; design of a soil cap to isolate waste; a sediment and erosion control plan; drainage and venting systems; and a post-construction monitoring program.