Environmental regulators say they're investigating possible enforcement action after discovering that Chemours spilled a GenX precursor into the Cape Fear River in early October.
In a press release Thursday afternoon, officials with the state Department of Environmental Quality said preliminary data revealed a spike in the levels of GenX in untreated water near the chemical company's Fayetteville Works facility in Bladen County. After contacting the company, DEQ spokesman Jamie Kritzer said Chemours officials revealed that workers had spilled dimer acid fluoride during planned maintenance at the plant Oct. 6.
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Dimer acid fluoride effectively breaks down in water into the equivalent of GenX, a poorly studied and unregulated contaminant in a family of chemicals linked to cancer and other negative health effects. Kritzer said it's unclear how much of the chemical leaked or how long it spilled into the Cape Fear River.
"We are investigating all angles of this spill and what's happened as it relates to the spill," Kritzer said.
Although the release from DEQ said the agency will "take additional enforcement action" against Chemours, it's unclear exactly what form that enforcement will take. Kritzer said that will be part of the investigation into the spill.
"We are determining all appropriate enforcement actions based on violations that have been committed, and we will continue to investigate and hold the company accountable," DEQ Assistant Secretary Sheila Holman said in the release.
Experts from the state Department of Health and Human Services set a "health protective" threshold for GenX of 140 parts per trillion months ago after reporting from the StarNews in Wilmington revealed the presence of the contaminant in treated water downriver from the Chemours plant.
Under pressure from the state, Chemours told regulators earlier this year it halted the discharge of GenX into the river. As a result, state regulators said just two weeks ago they were not planning to suspend the company's wastewater permit.
DEQ said tests of the river water around the Fayetteville Works facility around the time of the spill last month showed that levels of GenX peaked to 3,700 parts per trillion on Oct. 9. By Oct. 16, the latest data the state has received so far, levels had dropped to 380 parts per trillion in untreated water.
In a Wednesday release from Brunswick County's public utility, officials reported seeing GenX levels in treated water hit 197 parts per trillion – above the state's threshold – in samples taken on Oct. 19, after the spill.
Kritzer said state regulators are gathering more data and working with county officials to determine what, if any, actions residents should take, but he offered no specific guidance Thursday afternoon.
The Cape Fear Public Utility Authority, which draws from the river and provides drinking water in and around Wilmington, also saw an October spike in its numbers, although the figures for drinking water remained below the state’s health advisory goal.
Tests there show treated water from the Sweeney plant hit 52 parts per trillion on Oct. 18 and 98 parts per trillion on Oct. 23. Samples had been running an average of 35 parts per trillion for the month prior.
The October spill comes as DEQ continues to examine the prevalence of GenX contamination in the groundwater surrounding the Chemours plant. Over the past several weeks, state regulators have directed the company to supply dozens of nearby residents who use private drinking water wells with bottled water after discovering elevated levels of GenX in groundwater.