Illegal dumping returns near High Rock Road in Alamance County

A rural stretch near High Rock Road and Lynch Store Road has become a repeat dumping site, with trash, old electronics, mattresses and other debris piling up again in unincorporated Alamance County. For nearby residents, the mess has turned into a long-running test of whether county enforcement can do more than clear a site once and watch it fill back up.

Lizzie McCrory said the dumping has gone on for at least 15 years, and the scene has left her disgusted. The complaint is not only about an eyesore. The debris can affect drainage, attract vermin and drag down the look of the surrounding countryside, all while leaving neighbors to live beside a site that keeps cycling back into disrepair.

Alamance County officials said the environmental health department received a complaint in 2025 and addressed it, but another complaint came in within the last week. That timeline suggests the problem is active, not resolved, and it places the focus on prevention rather than another cleanup alone. In a county where lightly monitored rural roads can become unofficial dumping grounds, the central question is whether officials can stop repeat dumping after the trash is removed.

County rules give the government a framework to act. Alamance County’s solid-waste ordinance defines an open dump as a disposal site that lacks a license or does not comply with state or county rules. The ordinance governs storage, collection, transport and disposal of solid waste, and the county says it is intended to protect public health and safety.

The county’s Planning Department handles code-enforcement complaints in unincorporated areas and verifies complaints by visiting the site after one is filed. Alamance County Environmental Health says improper solid-waste disposal can contaminate groundwater and create rodent and mosquito breeding, fire hazards and injuries from sharp or corrosive materials. North Carolina’s Department of Environmental Quality says illegal dumping is an environmental crime, with charges that can range from misdemeanor to felony, and says the problem is rising across the state.

Alamance County also maintains a County Clean Up page that points residents to cleanup resources, recently cleaned areas, partner organizations and volunteer help through North Carolina Department of Transportation roadside cleanup supplies. For residents near High Rock Road, though, the immediate reality remains unchanged: another pile, another complaint and another chance for the county to prove that this cleanup will not become the next one that failed to last.