As federal regulators warn that toxic “forever chemicals” are showing up in more faucets nationwide, utilities in North Carolina are racing to contain the contamination while bracing for new regulations and rising costs.

The Environmental Protection Agency’s latest data found PFAS chemicals at 200 additional drinking water systems across the country, bringing the total number of Americans at risk to more than 172 million.

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“These chemicals cause harm at incredibly low concentrations, and any additional exposure is a concern,” said David Andrews, acting chief science officer at the Environmental Working Group. “This is a public health problem that needs to be addressed with urgency.”

PFAS — short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances — are a group of human-made chemicals used in everything from firefighting foam to food packaging. They’re nicknamed “forever chemicals” because they don’t break down in the environment and build up in the body over time.

Studies have linked them to serious health risks, including cancer, immune system suppression, developmental harm, and reduced vaccine effectiveness.

North Carolina Hotspots

In North Carolina, several utilities were flagged in the latest EPA update, including Fayetteville and the City of Durham. They join dozens of other systems, including Apex, Cary, Burlington, Wilmington, and Orange County.

The EPA set new enforceable limits, or maximum contaminant levels (MCLs), in April 2024:

  • 4 parts per trillion → PFOA and PFOS
    • 10 parts per trillion → PFHxS, PFNA, GenX
      • A combined “hazard index” limit for certain PFAS mixtures

        Utilities currently have until 2029 to comply, but the EPA has signaled it may push that deadline to 2031 and roll back enforceable limits for several PFAS compounds — including GenX, which has been at the center of contamination concerns in eastern North Carolina.

        How utilities are responding

        City of Durham

        Durham has been testing for PFAS since 2018 and posts quarterly results online. Recent testing shows PFAS levels in treated drinking water are hovering near the new federal limits, sometimes above and sometimes below.

        In a July public meeting, officials announced plans to install a powdered activated carbon (PAC) treatment system. The city is working with HDR, Inc. to design the $15 million upgrade, which is scheduled for completion by 2029.

        “We’ve been proactively testing for PFAS well before it was required,” city officials said in a statement. “Our long-term treatment upgrades are moving forward so we can meet, or beat, the federal standards.”

        Durham continues working with state regulators to study potential PFAS sources in its watershed but says it has not identified a single “smoking gun.”

        Fayetteville / PWC

        Chemours’ historic release of PFAS into the Cape Fear River has caused significant downstream contamination, impacting residents living near the plant and communities further south — including Wilmington — where high levels of PFAS, including GenX, have been detected in drinking water. 

        Fayetteville’s Public Works Commission (PWC) draws its drinking water from intake points on the Cape Fear River, which are upstream of Chemours’ Fayetteville Works facility. PWC says drinking water intake has not been directly impacted by the river discharges, but the facility has been linked to contamination in surrounding soil, air, and groundwater.

        Recent PWC test results show some PFAS levels, including PFOA, above the new federal limit.

        PWC currently uses powdered activated carbon to lower PFAS levels and is expanding its PAC system by 2025. It is also installing a granular activated carbon (GAC) filtration system, scheduled for completion in 2028.

        “Water provided by PWC continues to be safe to drink and meets or exceeds all current EPA regulatory requirements,” said Gavin MacRoberts, PWC’s communications manager.

        To offset costs, PWC has secured $81 million in grants and low-interest loans and continues to advocate for regulatory agencies to hold polluters accountable for contamination.

        Apex & Cary

        Customers in Apex and Cary are served by the shared Cary/Apex Water Treatment Facility, which draws its water from Jordan Lake. The facility currently uses powdered activated carbon (PAC) to reduce PFAS levels in treated drinking water, and officials say results are consistently meeting the EPA’s new standards.

        The Cary/Apex facility is also participating in an Invicta Water pilot program at Jordan Lake, testing new technology designed to remove PFAS without producing PFAS-laden waste — a challenge utilities across the country are struggling to manage.

        “We’ve been treating for the reduction of PFAS for many years, and we’ve been in full compliance with the new regulations since long before the new regulations were introduced,” said Michael Deaton, Apex’s director of water resources.

        Orange County / OWASA

        Orange Water and Sewer Authority (OWASA) serves Chapel Hill and Carrboro and has detected PFAS levels in raw water samples from the Cane Creek Reservoir as high as 60 to 80 parts per trillion for PFOA and PFOS — well above the EPA’s new limit of 4 ppt.

        To address this, OWASA uses powdered activated carbon (PAC), which reduces PFAS levels in treated drinking water to below the federal limit.

        "Our long-term plan is to move toward a granular activated carbon treatment facility that actually destroys PFAS instead of just shifting the problem somewhere else," Spinelli said.

        But the move comes with a hefty price tag. The Cape Fear Public Utility Authority spent $43 million on a granular activated carbon system to remove PFAS, including GenX, from the drinking water for Wilmington-area residents.

        “We want to find every possible funding opportunity to reduce the burden on our ratepayers for something they didn’t cause," Spinelli said.

        Statewide and National Pressure

        While some utilities are already meeting federal limits, others will face costly upgrades to comply.

        Apex alone spends between $1.5 million and $2.5 million per year on enhanced PFAS removal, about 15% of its annual water treatment budget, while OWASA expects to invest millions more in its planned granular activated carbon facility.

        Environmental advocates said local efforts are not enough unless upstream pollution is addressed.

        “Addressing the problem means going to the source,” Andrews said. “For PFAS, that’s industrial sites, chemical plants, and the unnecessary use of these chemicals in consumer products.”

        Despite growing pressure, the EPA has signaled plans to roll back enforceable limits for four PFAS compounds, leaving only PFOA and PFOS regulated under the federal drinking water law.

        “Rolling back these limits would make it harder to hold polluters responsible and ensure clean drinking water,” said Melanie Benesh, EWG’s vice president for government affairs. “Everyone deserves access to clean water, and it shouldn’t fall to consumers alone to filter PFAS from their tap water.”

        What’s Next

        The EPA is expected to release more PFAS testing data later this year, which could reveal even more affected communities.

        In the meantime, utilities across North Carolina are balancing regulatory compliance with affordability. Many are pursuing lawsuits against polluters, including Chemours, to recover treatment costs.

        “We feel like we’re having to treat for something we didn’t make, didn’t understand, didn’t anticipate — but now we have to do something with it,” Spinelli said. “It’s not fun to pay an increasing water bill just to manage something you didn’t cause, but we’re trying to do it in the most responsible way possible.”

        Residents can see test results on the EWG Tap Water Database and learn more about filtration from EPA's Water Filter Fact Sheet.