Activists gathered in Mebane on Tuesday to speak out against Buc-ee’s planned near the intersection of Interstate 40 and 85. It that would be the gas station’s first location in North Carolina.  

The popular, super-sized gas station and convenience store is set to be built on 34 acres along Trollingwood Hawfields Road. Construction could be complete by 2027.

On Tuesday, a group called the Seven Directions of Service and other speakers shared a new report about the environmental, economic and health impacts of the gas station. 

“This is more than a story about a gas station,” Rania
Masri, co-director of the NC Environmental Justice Network, said. “This is a story about public health [and] environmental justice.”

Multiple speakers voiced concern about toxic pollution from gas stations and idling cars putting neighboring parks, homes and schools at risk.

Air pollution was also discussed, with one speaker estimating the proposed Mebane Buc-ce’s will bring up to 2,000 cars per hour to the area.

“This is not just an inconvenience, this is a public health crisis,” Masri said.

Others were concerned about the amount of underground gas tanks the Buc-ee’s will require.

“We do not need more toxic infrastructure,” another speaker said. “We need clean water, breathable air, and communities where health and dignity are non-negotiable.”

Seven Directions of Service, which is indigenous-led, works to protect area considered the ancestral home of North Carolina-based tribes. On Tuesday, speakers said the location for the new Buc-ee’s will be built on sacred ground recognized by the non-profit World Monuments Fund.

Mebane Mayor Ed Hooks has said the Buc-ee’s location could open by early 2027.

North Carolina’s first Buc-ee’s is expected to feature a 74,000-square feet store (bigger than the 54,000-square foot store in Florence, South Carolina), 652 parking spaces and 120 gas pumps. It could employ 225 people.

Many advocates cite the increase in jobs as a major reason to bring the company to Mebane.

“There are a lot of people that are in favor of it because of what it can do for the community and because it pays so well,” said Shalini Sealey, who created a petition in support of the Buc-ee’s before the project was approved by Mebane City Council in January 2024.

County leaders have also said the Buc-ee’s will bring an estimated $1.8 million in sales tax revenue to the area.

Buc-ee’s is known for its hot food bars serving brisket sandwiches, salads, chicken and more, its clean bathrooms and its large retail shop. It has been called the Disney World of gas stations.