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FOX 35 Investigates: Is landfill's proximity to an aquifer a concern?
Lake County officials fear after heavy rainfall, chemicals can be carried into a county-run lake called Wolf Branch Sink. The United States Geological Survey, Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Lake County Water Authority and a private environmental engineer told FOX 35 water from the Wolf Branch Sink drains straight into the aquifer.
MOUNT DORA, Fla. - The City of Mount Dora is home to an extremely unique water feature called the Wolf Branch Sink, which has a direct path to the aquifer.
It’s like an immediate drain, going straight into our drinking water system.
The backstory:
Right next to it is a landfill that officials in Lake County fear could pollute the water, without proper precautions in place.
Experts say storms could carry chemicals to the sink, and seepage could even happen horizontally through the ground.
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County officials say they aren’t getting any help in figuring out whether that’s already happening, and what it would take to stop it, if so.
The Wolf Branch Sink
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP), Lake County Water Authority, and a private environmental engineer told FOX 35 Reporter Marie Edinger, water from the Wolf Branch Sink drains straight into the aquifer.
Lake County Commission Chair Leslie Campione took Edinger to see the county-run lake called the Wolf Branch Sink, and the neighboring private landfill, for herself.
"Common sense tells you this really should not be going on here," Campione told Edinger. "This is a problem, and it’s got to be stopped."
The Wolf Branch Sink includes a feature called a swallet. There’s a waterfall, which spills down into a rushing creek, and carries over to an area where the water suddenly looks quite still. That’s the point where experts say the water is draining straight down into the aquifer.
Experts say that means the Floridan Aquifer – the main source of drinking water for 10 million people, according to the USGS, is especially susceptible to contamination in that exact spot.
The water
The City of Mount Dora’s Public Works had a consultant test the water at Wolf Branch Sink and found two "notable" chemicals: Acetone, and Butanone.
The levels of acetone were double the amount the EPA considers acceptable, and Butanone (also called MEK, a volatile solvent found in gasoline) also exceeded levels the EPA considers acceptable.
Based on the landfill's own findings, we know some degree of contamination is happening; it's just a matter of whether any of it is getting into the aquifer.
Mid-Florida Materials, the company that owns the landfill, had a consultant conduct groundwater tests near the Sink. They found benzene and methane in amounts exceeding the "Primary Drinking Water Standards" set by the FDA. The EPA has no set amount of methane in drinking water it considers acceptable.
So where’s that coming from?
Mid-Florida’s hired engineers concluded that, "landfill gas is likely impacting the well."
And that’s the water the County fears could seep to the Sink and then the aquifer.
Lake County officials’ pleas for help
This issue came to the attention of Justin Elkins, the Associate Director of the Lake County Water Authority, which maintains water quality and conservation. Bobby Bonilla, the Executive Director of Lake County Parks and Water Resources, also got involved.
They both noticed what Elkins says are clear signs of flooding by the landfill: an eroded berm and damaged silt fence.
They worried that could send water streaming from the landfill to Wolf Sink.
"We located this area here along this berm, and we found that there was possible seepage of surface water to groundwater. At that point, we elevated that notice to the State," said Elkins, gesturing to the ridge he found concerning while walking with Reporter Marie Edinger.
That’s when Commissioner Campione got involved. She wrote to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, which oversees the landfill, asking them to revoke Mid-Florida’s license. She also wrote to Hubbard Construction, the company that owns Mid-Florida Materials, saying "ceasing operations at this location immediately is the right thing to do."
Campione says the FDEP didn’t seem to be concerned.
"That's when we started to think: if they're not concerned about that, then we better start taking a look at how this has been reviewed throughout this process," the chairperson recounted.
As things stand now, the landfill is still set to grow.
Private research
Commissioner Campione wants to do more thorough testing to see if the aquifer is impacted, but the landfill and FDEP weren’t playing ball. Instead, she asked an environmental engineer who the County was already contracting with, to come out and take a look.
That private researcher is Dr. Devo Seereeram, an environmental and geotechnical engineer who owns a firm called Devo Engineering.
"What they’ve done could not have been worse," he told FOX 35 Reporter Marie Edinger.
It turns out, he’s been studying Wolf Branch Creek for years, and he suspects contaminants could have been present as early as 2011.
USGS research
The thing is – research into the risk isn’t actually new information.
The U.S. Geological Survey spent four years looking into the Wolf Branch Sink. That was from 1991 to 1995, before the landfill was built.
Those scientists concluded in 1996, "a contaminant spill in the basin could pose a direct threat to the aquifer."
The landfill
Despite warnings about the risk, the FDEP allowed development anyway.
In 2019, the FDEP issued a permit allowing the landfill to expand.
"I feel like we have such a responsibility to see this through, and I’m not going to quit," said Commissioner Chair Campione.
The solutions
To be clear, no one in this story is accusing Mid-Florida Materials or Hubbard of malfeasance here – the people FOX 35 interviewed think they really just didn’t know about the proximity to the Sink and the risks that could come with it.
Chairman Campione wants the entire landfill shut down, and she wants remediation action to protect the aquifer.
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Dr. Seereeram disagrees; he just thinks the landfill should be moved further back.
"I work for developers. I'm not an environmental fanatic or freak," he explained. "But I know pragmatic boundaries. I know lines we are not supposed to cross."
The other side:
FOX 35 took all of these questions and concerns straight to Mid-Florida Materials and Hubbard Construction. FOX 35’s Marie Edinger called and emailed each company, trying different contact methods and point of contact. They never responded.
She reached out to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, who since February 18th, 2025, has promised a response. As of October 17th, 2025, that response has not come – despite 7 attempts from Edinger via email and phone call.
The Source: FOX 35 Reporter Marie Edinger was contacted about this story by Lake County Commission Chair Leslie Campione, who she later interviewed about the issue. Edinger also issued multiple people from the Lake County Water Authority, as well as a private engineer. She read a detailed report by the US Geological Survey, and reached out to the agency about it. She reached out to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, along with Mid-Florida Materials and the company’s owner, Hubbard Construction, trying different contact methods and different officials, but never got a response.