Willis Mt. Tailings Pond

Willis Mt. Tailings Pond is an earth dam located in Buckingham County, Virginia. It carries a Significant hazard potential classification.

About Willis Mt. Tailings Pond

The primary purpose of Willis Mt. Tailings Pond is tailings. Tailings dams contain waste material from mining operations — typically a slurry of finely ground rock left over after valuable minerals have been extracted. These structures require ongoing monitoring because tailings can contain heavy metals and other contaminants. The dam is owned by Kyanite Mining Corp. (private).

The dam stands 35 feet tall and stretches 700 feet across, and has a maximum storage capacity of 382 acre-feet.

This dam has a significant hazard potential classification, meaning that a failure could cause significant economic damage — flooding roads, bridges, or property downstream — but is not expected to result in loss of life. An emergency action plan is in place for this dam.

At 35 feet, this dam is taller than 82% of dams nationwide.

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Significant HazardNot Available ConditionEmergency Action Plan: Yes

Location

StateVirginia
CountyBuckingham
Nearest CityHill Crest, Va.
Coordinates37.48833, -78.47056

Physical Characteristics

Dam TypeEarth
NID Height35 ft
Dam Height35 ft
Dam Length700 ft

Storage & Hydraulics

NID Storage382 acre-ft
Max Storage382 acre-ft

Ownership & Safety

PurposeTailings
OwnerKyanite Mining Corp.
Owner TypePrivate
Hazard ClassificationSignificant
Condition AssessmentNot Available
Emergency Action PlanYes

Identifiers

NID IDVA029045
Federal IDVA029045
More InfoState Dam Safety Program

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