Public Notice – Environmental Permit

Permit Number: GWI000291

Notice Purpose: To seek public comment on a draft permit from the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) for the withdrawal of ground water in Northampton County, Virginia.

Public Comment Period: August 29, 2025 – September 29, 2025

Permit Name: Ground Water Withdrawal Permit issued by DEQ pursuant to applicable water laws and regulations.

Applicant Name, Address and Permit Number: Ray Newman; 4131 Richardson Rd., Virginia Beach, VA 23455; GWI000291

Name and Location of Water Withdrawal: Highway Farm; Lankford Hwy (Parcel #48-A-32, #48-A-33, #48-A-34), Machipongo, VA 23405

Project Description:  Ray Newman has applied for a reissuance of a permit for Highway Farm. The permit would authorize the applicant to withdraw a maximum of 47,558,000 gallons per year and 16,417,000 gallons per month from the Lower Yorktown-Eastover, Upper Yorktown-Eastover, and Surficial aquifers. The ground water withdrawal will supplement withdrawals from an on-site pond as needed for crop irrigation. The top of the Lower Yorktown-Eastover aquifer at the proposed withdrawal site was determined to be 260 feet below land surface. The top of the Upper Yorktown-Eastover aquifer at the proposed withdrawal site was determined to be 130 feet below land surface. The bottom of the Surficial aquifer at the proposed withdrawal site was estimated to be 87 feet below land surface. An aquifer is a body of rock or layer of sediment in the ground in which ground water is stored and transported. DEQ has made a tentative decision to issue the permit.

Affected Area: The radial distance from the well to where computer modeling predicts the aquifer may experience one foot of drawdown due to the withdrawal is illustrated on maps that can be viewed in the draft permit package linked below.

To download the draft permit package, please click here.

DEQ Contact:

            R. Cecil Byles, Central Office

            Phone: 804-401-7841

            Email: robert.c.byles@deq.virginia.gov