While nearly half of the tap water in the U.S. was found to be laced with hormone-warping ‘forever chemicals,’ Brunswick County, N.C. and Quad Cities in Iowa, had significantly higher levels of PFAs in their drinking supply.
In the most comprehensive study of its kind, researchers from the US Geological Survey tested water sources at more than 700 locations across the country for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
They found that the next city with the worst levels of PFAs in its tap water, Miami, Florida, was way behind the two top spots, at 56.7ppt. Brunswick County registered levels at 185.9ppt and Quad Cities at 109.8ppt.
In recent years there have been a growing number of federal drinking-water guidelines, but there are no current enforceable national drinking water standards.
However, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) limits PFAS to 0.004 parts per trillion (ppt) for drinking water, a small amount due to their links to cancer, infertility, obesity, and autism.
North Carolina at large has been known to have significant issues with PFAS pollution as the state has a large number of military bases, airports and industrial sites. PFAS are commonly found in firefighting foam and gear, which has led to contamination of military bases and airports.
The problem is particularly grave along the Cape Fear River partly because of the DuPont plant in Fayetteville and its spin-off, Chemours.
According to the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the DuPont chemical company dumped PFAs for over four decades into the river, which supplies drinking water for around 350,000 North Carolinians.
Many of the area’s residents have claimed over the years that they got cancer from the contamination.
Back in 2019, scientists recommended expanding an investigation of suspected thyroid cancer clusters in the area, as reported by NC Newsline.
In 2017, the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority filed a lawsuit against the company over their dumping of toxic materials in the river, and in 2020 the state’s Attorney General filed another.
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