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WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM APRIL 20-26, 2022 UCW 11 NEWS In a lawsuit filed last month, Cumberland County alleges that Chemours and its predecessor companies have, over the past few decades, "secretly pumped millions of pounds of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances," or PFAS, into the air above its Fayetteville Works facility in the southern part of the county. Chemours, a spin-off of the chemical company DuPont, is the maker of GenX, one of the PFAS substances, among others, referred to in the lawsuit. Cumberland County alleges that Chemours and DuPont have been polluting the air, groundwater and surface water with PFAS for decades with a "blatant disregard" for residents in the county. "As has been widely reported, defendants have used the en- vironment surrounding the- Fayetteville Works facility as a dumping ground for hundreds of chemicals while assuring the EPA and state agencies that they were doing no such thing," the lawsuit says. e lawsuit alleges that from the early 1970s until 2015, when DuPont owned the Fayetteville Works site, the company "dis- charged millions of pounds of PFAS." Among these PFAS, the law- suit alleges, was a chemical called C8, a substance previ- ously produced by DuPont that may be related to health issues such as birth defects and cancer, when exposed at high levels, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. In 2005, DuPont agreed to pay $16.5 million in EPA fines for violating a requirement to "re- port to EPA substantial risk in- formation about chemicals they manufacture, process or distrib- ute in commerce," according to the regulatory agency. In 2009, DuPont began pro- duction of GenX as a replace- ment to phase out C8. While C8 has ceased, the production of GenX at the Fayetteville Works site contin- ues, but there is limited infor- mation on the effect of GenX in humans, according to the N.C. Department of Health and Hu- man Services. In an emailed statement to Carolina Public Press, Che- mours said the company was disappointed by Cumberland's decision to file a lawsuit. "Our discussions with the county have included offer- ing different alternative water systems to qualifying county properties," the company said. "We are also working collab- oratively with the county and (the Fayetteville Public Works Commission) water to connect impacted Cumberland County residents to public water where feasible." In 2020, the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners voted to allocate $10.5 million in an effort to find an alternative water source for Gray's Creek, an area south of Fayetteville where GenX was found in N.C. Department of Environmental Quality testing in some residen- tial wells groundwater. Last month, commissioners were expected to finalize an agreement in which Fayetteville PWC would provide water to the area, but County Manager Amy Cannon requested more time to work on the contract with PWC. Since the Chemours facility is located off State Road 87, south of PWC's water supply and fur- ther down the Cape Fear River, the GenX contamination at- tributed to Chemours does not affect the PWC, a spokesperson for the utility said. e company has also sup- plied bottled water to students and faculty at Gray's Creek Elementary, the company's statement said. On behalf of Cumberland County, the lawsuit against Chemours was filed by Crueger Dickinson LLC and Baron & Budd, P.C. Commissioners decided on these firms last June. According to the contract with the attorneys, the firms will receive 25% of any possible recovery for damages. GenX effects on humans GenX is used in products such as food packaging, nonstick coatings and firefighting foam, according to DHHS. e substance is part of a larger group of chemicals called PFAS, known as "forever chemi- cals" due to their durability and virtual inability to be broken down. Exposure to high levels of some PFAS, according to the EPA, may lead to health issues in humans such as high blood pressure in pregnant women, developmental effects in chil- dren and increased risk of some cancers. For GenX specifically, the link isn't as clear. A study published by the EPA last year suggests that livers in animals may be sensitive to GenX. Other potential effects in animals include developmental issues and some cancers. More studies in people are needed to determine the chemi- cal's effect on the human liver or other organs, according to DHHS. A small, limited study from DHHS found that GenX may not stay in the human body for a long time. Chemours stands by the safety of the chemical, according to their website. "If incidental exposure were to occur, it's rapidly eliminated from the body," the company claims. Continued research on the effects on humans is ongoing among scientists, including those at N.C. State University's GenX exposure study. State investigation e N.C. Department of Envi- ronmental Quality has been in- vestigating allegations of GenX contamination from Chemours since June 2017 when the Wilm- ington StarNews reported that the chemical had been found in drinking water in the lower Cape Fear River. In February 2019, DEQ filed a consent order against Che- mours requiring them to ad- dress current and prevent future GenX contamination. Last year, DEQ found Che- mours responsible for the contamination of groundwater and water supply wells in New Hanover County and possibly Pender, Columbus and Bruns- wick counties as well. As a result, the state required Chemours to sample the drink- ing water in those downstream communities. On March 28, DEQ sent the company a let- ter requiring the company to expand their plan for sampling within the counties. In their emailed statement, Chemours said they are con- tinuing to comply with the state's consent order. "We are committed to con- tinued engagement with Cumberland County as we implement the terms of the consent order agreement," the company said. Why Chemours faces lawsuit from Cumberland County by BEN SESSOMS A carbon adsorption unit is seen at Chemours plant near Fayetteville on August 2, 2018. e com- pany said the unit was intended to reduce air emissions. (Photo by Melissa Sue Gerrits, Carolina Public Press) BEN SESSOMS, Carolina Public Press. COMMENTS? editor@upandcomingweekly. com. 910-484-6200.