WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Frustration among environmental activists this week as the Lear Corporation in Kenansville seeks a renewal permit with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality.
The permit allows Lear to release polyfluoroalkyl substances, also known as PFAS into the Cape Fear River. Extended exposure to PFAS are shown to have a number of negative health effects, according to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.
PFAS and other toxic chemicals in the river came to light in 2017, when Chemours received national attention for dumping PFAS into the Cape Fear River.
Port City Java CEO Steve Schnitzler, whose business relies on safe public water, said he is shocked at the prospect of more PFAS contamination in our waterways.
“It is inconceivable that we could be talking about yet another company dumping PFAS in the Cape Fear River in light of all that we have been going through in the past several years,” Schnitzler said.
But as Southern Environmental Law Center Senior Attorney Jean Zhuang notes, Chemours and Lear are not the only companies that release PFAS into the river.
“They have asked for a few industries to sample their wastewater for PFAS, and have found PFAS dischargers up and down the Cape Fear River Basin,” Zhuang said. “So, they know about dozens of known facilities and facilities that are suspected to be PFAs polluters.”
In the current draft of Lear’s permit renewal, although there are provisions for PFAS monitoring, there are no limits to the amount of PFAS the company can emit into the river.
“We want to make sure that DEQ does the right thing and shifts course and doesn’t start issuing all these permits that have no limit for PFAS,” Zhuang said.
Similar sentiments were echoed by Clean Cape Fear activist Rebecca Trammel, who feels that the NCDEQ needs to take action to limit or eliminate further contamination.
“Clean Cape Fear and NC State did a study, and we know that PFAS foam already covered Brunswick County beaches,” Trammel noted. “We don’t want anymore. We need to clean up what has already been done, and we need to make sure that this never happens again.”
The Lear Corporation said in a statement to WWAY:
“We are currently working with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) on a permit renewal that adheres strictly to state regulatory guidelines and standards governing the use and disposal of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
We conduct rigorous monitoring of our wastewater discharge to ensure compliance with the NCDEQ regulatory requirements and have reformulated the majority of our products to eliminate the use of PFAS. We are working to transition our remaining products to a PFAS-free solution as soon as reasonably practical.
We are committed to continuing to work with NCDEQ and to take appropriate environmental stewardship actions. Our highest priorities are the health and safety of people, local communities, and the environment.”
The NCDEQ also released the following statement:
“DEQ’s Division of Water Resources has extended the comment period until March 28 for the Lear Corp. wastewater treatment plant permit renewal to allow for public input. Information, including access to a copy of the draft permit, can be found online. Comments will be considered in decisions made about the permit. Members of the public who wish to comment can email publiccomments@deq.nc.gov, and include Lear Corp. in the subject line. When the public comment period ends, the DWR director will decide if a public hearing will be held. If the decision to hold a hearing is made, the hearing will be scheduled with 30 days of public notice.”