This afternoon, Assistant Secretary Sheila Holman of NCDEQ and NCDEQ General Counsel Bill Lane informed CFPUA that an agreement had been reached on an “addendum” to the Consent Order that mandates steps Chemours must take to address years of PFAS releases from its chemical manufacturing site.
The addendum would affect Paragraph 12 of the Consent Order, which addresses measures required of Chemours to reduce PFAS loading from its site into the Cape Fear River. The addendum was negotiated between Chemours and the State and the Southern Environmental Law Center on behalf of Cape Fear River Watch, Assistant Secretary Holman told CFPUA.
This information came as a surprise to CFPUA staff and its attorneys, who have been in ongoing discussions with the State regarding the consent order’s insufficient consideration for the interests of our customers, and no mention was made of this addendum in those discussions.
CFPUA was not provided with an advance copy of the proposed addendum. We will provide additional comment on the details of the proposal in the coming days once staff has had an opportunity to review it in detail.
“It is disappointing that we and our customers have once again been excluded by the State from these discussions about a subject that is of vital interest to our community,” said CFPUA Executive Director Jim Flechtner.
“We have seen no evidence this or any of the steps proposed so far by Chemours will sufficiently improve water quality to the same level that the State has set as the standard for private well owners around Chemours’ site,” Mr. Flechtner said. “We continue to be frustrated that our customers continue to be treated differently than people near the plant.”