Cape Fear River

Shows hands pouring a chemical into a testing container that labeled "Microfiber filter" These processes - along with mass spectrometry - helped identify GenX in the Cape Fear River. NC State will have a research center dedicated to PFAS.

N.C. State receives $7.4 million grant to establish PFAS research center

March 18, 2020 by Greg Barnes Leave a Comment

N.C. State receives $7.4 million grant to establish PFAS research center - North Carolina Health News

The center will expand on existing studies, including human exposure to PFAS in Wilmington and the Fayetteville area, and take a deeper look into getting rid of the chemicals.

By Greg Barnes During the past few years, researchers at N.C. State University have taken blood and tap water samples from people in the Wilmington and Fayetteville areas to assess their exposure to GenX and other PFAS chemicals. Now, with a $7.4 million federal grant announced this month, they plan to dive even deeper into […]

Houses against a blue sky in an area with wells contaminated by forever chemicals

People are buying houses unaware of ‘forever chemicals’ in their well water

January 6, 2020 by Greg Barnes

People are buying houses unaware of ‘forever chemicals’ in their well water - North Carolina Health News

For decades, DuPont and later Chemours spewed GenX and other PFAS chemicals into the air at a plant near a rural Cumberland County community, contaminating well water for at least 1,673 homes. Despite that, homebuilding there is booming.

UPDATE: The Cumberland County Board of Commissioners voted Monday to extend public water lines to Alderman and Gray’s Creek elementary schools, which lie in the heart of an area contaminated by PFAS. The board agreed to allocate $10.5 million from county reserves, about $3 million of which will be used to extend the lines to […]

shows a group of people gathered on a graffiti covered bridge, they're working with equipment that's on the ground.

What stories grabbed you in 2019? NC Health News most-read stories of the year, continued.

December 31, 2019 by Editor

What stories grabbed you in 2019? NC Health News most-read stories of the year, continued. - North Carolina Health News

NC Health News published more than 300 stories in 2019. These are rest of the topics which were widely read, shared and commented on.

By NC Health News staff PFAS, 1,4 dioxane still troubling NC waters In the Wilmington area, the reaction was swift to news in 2017 that potentially unhealthy levels of GenX and other “forever chemicals” had been found in drinking water drawn from the Cape Fear River. There, officials had someone to blame. The state Department […]

A municipal drinking water plant. Unlike at a private well, water is treated for bactria and for chemicals such as 1.4 dioxane at a central location, then pumped through pipes to residents. This can symbolize 1,4 dioxane contamination and clean water.

DEQ records show repeated releases of probable carcinogen into Haw River

November 19, 2019 by Greg Barnes

DEQ records show repeated releases of probable carcinogen into Haw River - North Carolina Health News

DEQ cites Greensboro and Reidsville for failing to report recent releases of 1,4 dioxane, a probable carcinogen, but newly released data show multiple discharges for almost two years.

By Greg Barnes For nearly two years, state regulators have required Greensboro and Reidsville to monitor monthly for the probable carcinogen 1,4 dioxane at their wastewater treatment plants. The data, which the state never made public before Friday, show alarmingly high concentrations of the chemical being released repeatedly into the Haw River from December 2017 […]

shows a lake with pilings sticking up from the water. It's a lake contaminated with coal ash.

Researcher weighs in on Trump administration’s coal ash rule redo

November 15, 2019 by Coastal Review Online

Researcher weighs in on Trump administration’s coal ash rule redo - North Carolina Health News

Earlier this month, the US EPA announced amendments to the regulations for the disposal of coal ash. Environmentalists are saying the rollback gives industry permission to pollute longer.

By Mark Hibbs Coastal Review Online The Trump administration moved last week to rewrite part of Obama-era regulations addressing coal ash disposal, which entails risks that a Duke University researcher says are all too familiar in coastal North Carolina. But a Duke Energy spokesperson said the proposed changes will have no effect on the utility’s […]

Shows arial view of construction of a thermal oxidizer to mitigate PFAS, machinery, building, etc at a facility that has dumped PFAS and other fluorochemicals into nearby rivers, the air.

Chemours vows to become ‘best in the world’ at controlling PFAS

October 1, 2019 by Greg Barnes

Chemours vows to become ‘best in the world’ at controlling PFAS - North Carolina Health News

That promise doesn’t ring true with people living near the plant, many of whom are drinking bottled water because Chemours polluted their wells and the Cape Fear River. They find no reason to trust the company.

By Greg Barnes During a tour of Chemours last week, plant manager Brian Long stopped near a maze of pipes to explain new carbon adsorption systems that the company says are reducing airborne emissions of GenX and other potentially harmful fluorochemicals by 92 percent from 2017 levels. A few minutes later, Long stopped again, this […]

a woman in rubber boots collects water from a muddy river. She's wearing a sweater, winter clothes

PFAS shows up in Haw River, Pittsboro water, but gets limited local attention

July 30, 2019 by Greg Barnes

PFAS shows up in Haw River, Pittsboro water, but gets limited local attention - North Carolina Health News

Research shows that the level of PFAS in Pittsboro’s drinking water is 30 times higher than it is in Durham. A new study by Duke University aims to determine whether Pittsboro residents are being harmed.

This story has been updated with additional information provided by the NC Dept. of Environmental Quality. By Greg Barnes On a windblown day in March, Emily Sutton wore rubber wading boots as she stood on the muddy banks of the Haw River and dipped a plastic sample bottle into the chilly, rushing water. Sutton, the […]

shows a couple embracing in a room, in the foreground are the tanks of the water filtration system.

Duke to study PFAS health effects in Pittsboro residents

July 29, 2019 by Greg Barnes

Duke to study PFAS health effects in Pittsboro residents - North Carolina Health News

Michigan residents say their state failed to quickly warn them about PFAS exposure. Could the same thing be happening in North Carolina?

This story has been updated with additional information provided by the NC Dept. of Environmental Quality. By Greg Barnes The drinking fountains at Gray’s Creek and Alderman Road elementary schools will remain shut off when students return to classes in Cumberland County next month. Those students have been drinking bottled water since October 2017, when […]

Additional Thanks

Categories