GenX Investigation
The Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) began investigating the presence of a compound known as GenX in the Cape Fear River in June 2017. The Chemours facility in Fayetteville was identified as the company that produces the GenX chemical for industrial processes.
The state’s investigation focused on protection of public health and drinking water. As part of the state’s investigation, DEQ began collecting water samples from multiple sites along the Cape Fear River, with additional samples collected throughout the region. Those samples were analyzed at two separate labs: Test America in Colorado and the Environmental Protection Agency’s lab in the Research Triangle Park.
Thanks to the state’s investigation, the release to the Cape Fear River of GenX and two other fluorinated compounds has stopped, water quality for these compounds at all finished drinking water sites is well within state health goals, and the state is developing better information needed to protect North Carolina’s water quality and public health.
Consent Order (signed Feb. 26, 2019) and related documents
Investigations and Enforcement Actions
Presentations related to GenX (from information sessions, EPA meeting and others)