Latest on PFAS contamination in the Cape Fear
CAPE FEAR AREA, NC (WWAY) — On Monday, November 14, the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority, Chemours, and North Carolina’s Department of Environmental Quality signed an agreement to have Chemours continue working to reduce the amount of forever chemicals in the Cape Fear River. Many are now asking what this latest agreement means when it comes to our water quality.
In the agreement, Chemours pledged to dismiss its appeal of a discharge permit meant to reduce the amount of PFAS contamination entering the Cape Fear River.
In September, the NCDEQ issued a final national pollutant discharge elimination treatment permit for a system to remove PFAS compounds in contaminated groundwater, stormwater, and water from seeps at Chemours’ Fayetteville Works chemical manufacturing site.
Chemours is putting measures into place to reduce further PFAS contamination, but area water providers are still working to eliminate what’s already in the water.
Chemours released a statement regarding the agreement, “Chemours is pleased to have reached an agreement with NCDEQ regarding our NPDES 004 permit so that we can proceed with completing the barrier wall construction and begin operation of the barrier wall’s associated groundwater extraction wells and treatment system”
In a six-month period after construction is complete and put in use, Chemours will make possible modifications to further reduce PFAS discharges and meet the permit requirement.
CFPUA says it plans to continue to operate it new granular activated carbon filters to address forever chemicals in customers’ water, as Chemours works to fulfill the agreement.
“We can’t say much, –you know, about what effect it will have until we see what happens with the discharge permit. It’s currently what we estimate it would cost is going to cost about $3.7 million to operate the filter this fiscal year, and another 5 million to operate it in subsequent years, and again this is money that our customers are having to pay, not Chemours,” said Vaughn Hagerty, Cape Fear Public Utility Authority director of communications.
Another water service provider in the Cape Fear, H2GO did not have a comment regarding Chemours dropping its discharge permit appeal, but told WWAY “H2GO will be treating water from the lower peedee and black creek aquifers, as an alternative to water sourced from the cape fear river. H2GO will be providing aquifer-sourced, clean, contaminant free drinking water January 2023”
Chemours promised to dismiss its permit appeal within five days of signing the agreement.
