By Erin Smith
A revised consent order against Chemours was filed in Bladen County Superior Court on Monday. The revised consent order will address future PFAS contamination in the Cape Fear River including GenX. The order was signed by Resident Superior Judge Douglas Sasser.
The consent order will mandate that Chemours reduce PFAS at the facility and in the air, groundwater and surface water.
The Consent Order notes Chemours will be required to:
*install abatement technology at the Facility (including a thermal oxidizer) that, once fully operational, will permanently reduce annual air emissions of GenX Compounds and other PFAS (as those terms are defined below) by at least 99% from baseline levels and control all PFAS emissions from process streams routed to the thermal oxidizer at an efficiency of 99.99%;
*on an interim basis, reduce annual air emissions of GenX Compounds (as defined below) by at least 82% beginning as of October 6, 2018 and by at least 92% beginning as of December 31, 2018;
* continue to capture for off-site disposal all process wastewater from its operations at the Facility unless or until an NPDES Permit is issued authorizing the discharge of process wastewater;
*undertake the measures specified below with respect to abatement and remediation of groundwater contamination and provision of alternative drinking water supplies;
*agree to the all of the terms of the Consent Order.
In addition, Chemours will be required to report air emissions of GEnX each month, measure and analyze the PFAS contamination at downstream public utilities’ raw water intakes, remove 99 percent of surface water contamination, and provide effective systems to treat drinking water fountains and sinks in public locations.
The consent order also calls for Chemours to submit a written report demonstrating full compliance with all of the measures in the order by February 28, 2021. According to the consent order, Chemours must meet all of these requirements each year.
The consent order also indicates there will be no future discharges of wastewater from the manufacturing site into the Cape Fear River until a NPDES permit has been issued setting limits for the control of GenX discharges.
The order states that the NC Department of Environmental Quality and the Cape Fear River Watch will review plans developed by Chemours and all three will work together to try to reach the goal number for PFAS.
About Author
