WASHINGTON (WNCT) – An updated report on polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) by the Environmental Working Group and the Environmental Protection Agency has one location in North Carolina among the worst in the nation.
On August 17, the EPA released the first results of PFAS tests from 2,000 water utilities across the nation. According to a media release, there was the presence of one or more PFAS compounds at 431 locations serving 26.3 million people. The tests also support EWG scientists’ estimate from 2020 that more than 200 million Americans could have PFAS in their drinking water.
Some of the prominent newly identified sites include:
- Fresno, Calif. (population: 522,352) – nine PFAS at 194.3 parts per trillion, or ppt.
- New Castle, Del. (population: 6,000) – two PFAS at 270 ppt.
- Robeson County, N.C. (population: 64,295) – nine PFAS at 149.7 ppt.
- Suffolk County, N.Y. (population: 1,100,000) – four PFAS at 92.8 ppt.
The report indicates the average number of individual PFAS detected in water is 3.1 forever chemicals per water system. Among the locations with the highest PFAS detections, 28 water systems reported PFAS at levels above 70 ppt, the EPA’s previous non-enforceable health guideline.
In Eastern North Carolina, an interactive map that’s been released by EWG shows drinking water levels above the proposed limit and below the proposed limit. Military sites like Cherry Point and Camp Lejeune are also shown. Areas in several ENC counties were listed below the proposed limit, including locations in Pitt, Beaufort, Hyde, Tyrrell, Lenoir, Craven, Carteret, Pamlico, Duplin, Onslow and Greene Counties.
You can read more about the report by clicking here.
be subject to a hazard index calculation to determine whether the levels of these PFAS pose a potential health risk.
