Toxic Yadkin site among those getting cleanup money in infrastructure law

A federal infusion of cash will help speed the cleanup of four contaminated sites in North Carolina, including a Yadkin County location.

The infrastructure bill recently signed into law by President Joe Biden includes $1 billion to clean up almost 50 sites nationwide to tackle a backlog of dangerously polluted places.

One of those Superfund sites is the 80-acre former Holcomb Creosote facility in Yadkinville. It operated for more than a half-century as a wood-treating facility. 

According to a state environmental assessment from April, hazardous materials from the operation contaminated the soil, groundwater, and a nearby pond.

Three other North Carolina Superfund sites — in Charlotte, Gastonia and Jacksonville — are included in the latest round of funding.

It's the first installment of a $3.5 billion appropriation to the Superfund program from the bipartisan infrastructure law. Officials with the Environmental Protection Agency say most of the sites are in minority communities that have suffered disproportionately from contamination.