DEQ-CFW_00021758

Michael S. Regan, Secretary
Release: FdMEDIATE Contact: Jamie Kritzer
Date: June 27, 2017 Phone: [phone]
DEQ verifies Chemours has stopped discharging GenX wastewater
Visit part of ongoing investigation by DEQ, DHHS
Company reports it is now hauling waste out -%state for incineration
RALEIGH — Staff with the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality today inspected Chemours' Fayetteville facility
and verified that the company is containing wastewater from the GenX process, preventing any of the unregulated chemical
compound from discharging into the Cape Fear River.
DEQ officials verified during an on -site inspection Tuesday that Chemours is redirecting the wastewater from the GenX
process into temporary storage tanks at the Fayetteville facility so it can be moved off -site for disposal. Chemours officials
told state DEQ officials that the company shipped one tank of wastewater from the process to an Arkansas commercial
incinerator on June 22 and that the company is making similar arrangements to move and incinerate other waste collected
during the process.
The site visit is part of an ongoing investigation led by DEQ in consultation with the N.C. Department of Health
and Human Services looking into reports of an unregulated chemical known as GenX in the lower Cape Fear
River. Chemours produces GenX at its facility in Fayetteville and previously discharged wastewater from the
process into the Cape Fear.
In response to requests from DEQ, local officials and residents, Chemoursannounced on June 20 the company would
capture, remove and safely dispose of wastewater containing the byproduct GenX instead of releasing it into the Cape Fear.
'We are holding Chemours accountable as we continue to investigate the presence of GenX in the Cape Fear River," said
Michael Regan, secretary of the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality. "While we have verified that Chemours is no
longer discharging GenX into the Cape Fear River, we are continuing to work to better understand this unregulated
compound, how much of it is in the river,and its potential impacts."
As part of its investigation, DEQ officials are collecting water samples at 12 locations in the Cape Fear River near
Chemours' Fayetteville facility and downstream at the Wilmington area's water system intakes, finished water and
groundwater wells serving the lower Cape Fear region. Officials believe Chemours is the source of the GenX.. The first
water samples were collected June 19 in the Fayetteville region and June 22 in the Wilmington region. DEQ officials are
repeating the same water collection process in both locations this week and next week.
The water samples are being analyzed by tsvo independent laboratories, a certified facility in Colorado and a a U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency lab in the Research Triangle Park. The water samples collected by DEQ on June 19 and
22 arrived at the Colorado and EPA labs last week where analysis is underway.
Once lab analysis is complete, results will be reviewed by state officials with DEQ and the N.C. Department of Health and
Human Services to complete a comprehensive health analysis. Both DEQ and DHHS will release the results of the testing
once available. It's expected that results will be available about a month from the time the first samples arrived at the labs.
DEQ officials are collecting water samples both near the Chemours plant in Cumberland County and downstream in New
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DEQ-CFW 00021758

Hanover County. Officials are waiting three days between sampling events upstream and downstream in the Cape Fear
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River because that is the estimated travel time for water to flow the 70 miles from the Chemours plant in Fayetteville to the
river intakes near Wilmington. Officials are trying to sample water parcels in the two areas for a more consistent and
representative analysis.
For the latest information on what DEQ and DHHS are doing to address this issue, please visit DEQ's web page devoted to
GenX, https://deq.nc.gov/news/hot-topics/genx-investigation.
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DEQ-CFW 00021759