{"id":319789,"date":"2025-11-29T02:40:10","date_gmt":"2025-11-29T02:40:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/319789\/"},"modified":"2025-11-29T02:40:10","modified_gmt":"2025-11-29T02:40:10","slug":"study-finds-pfas-particles-evaded-testing-and-contaminated-nc-water-wral-com","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/319789\/","title":{"rendered":"Study finds PFAS particles evaded testing and contaminated NC water :: WRAL.com"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Duke University study<\/a> has revealed how a previously undetectable form of PFAS pollution moved through Burlington\u2019s wastewater system for years, transforming into more toxic chemicals and contaminating drinking water in communities downstream, including Chapel Hill and Pittsboro.<\/p>\n

Researchers traced the problem to tiny PFAS \u201cnanoparticle\u201d precursors released by a textile manufacturer, particles so unusual they slipped past standard testing methods.<\/p>\n

Duke University environmental engineering professor Lee Ferguson said his team first realized something was wrong when PFAS levels in the Haw River downstream were far higher than anything showing up in Burlington\u2019s wastewater monitoring.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had noticed really high levels of PFAS in the Haw River coming into drinking water supplies downstream, but we couldn\u2019t figure out why we weren\u2019t seeing the same levels in the wastewater that was contributing to those discharges,\u201d Ferguson said. \u201cThese materials are not on any of the standard EPA methods. We really need better methods and a broader scope of analyses to find these hidden sources.\u201d<\/p>\n

To solve the mystery, researchers used a chemical process to convert everything in the wastewater into measurable PFAS. Concentrations then jumped, revealing a class of PFAS that had never been detected in the environment before. These nanoparticulate PFAS behave more like tiny solids than dissolved chemicals, making them invisible to mass spectrometers commonly used in PFAS testing.<\/p>\n

Some precursor levels in the textile wastewater reached 12 million parts per trillion. That’s astronomically higher than the EPA\u2019s\u00a0maximum contaminant level for certain PFAS in drinking water, of 4 parts per trillion.<\/p>\n

The findings help explain earlier red flags. Haw Riverkeeper Emily Sutton said her organization documented extreme contamination years before scientists understood its source. \u201cOur communities have been exposed to incredibly high levels of these toxins for decades,” she said.<\/p>\n

Part of the problem was Burlington\u2019s former sludge-reduction system, which used heat and pressure to break down organic material. The process reduced solid waste volumes but also created ideal conditions for PFAS precursors to convert into more toxic PFAS molecules. \u201cThat process is a very efficient way to convert PFAS precursors into PFAS molecules that then move into the river and eventually into drinking water supplies,\u201d Ferguson said.<\/p>\n

Once Burlington discontinued that treatment method and the textile manufacturer changed its industrial practices, PFAS levels dropped significantly. Ferguson said the collaboration among researchers, regulators and industry offers a playbook for other communities. \u201cThis is really a model for how academics, municipalities and industries can work together,\u201d he said. \u201cDecreasing PFAS at the source is the most effective way to get it out of our water supplies.\u201d<\/p>\n

But the discovery also points to long-term risks. Before the changes, PFAS precursor nanoparticles were concentrated into biosolids that were spread on agricultural fields for years. Ferguson said those particles will continue breaking down slowly. \u201cIt\u2019s essentially a slow-release pill of PFAS into waterways and agricultural settings for years to come,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Sutton said that raises particular concern for private well users. \u201cOnce groundwater and wells are contaminated, it\u2019s incredibly difficult to treat, and private wells aren\u2019t protected under the Safe Drinking Water Act,\u201d Sutton said.<\/p>\n

The study underscores a central challenge for regulators across the country. \u201cJust measuring for the standard set of PFAS on regulatory lists is not protective in every situation,\u201d Ferguson said. \u201cWe need to understand and regulate PFAS precursors that might not be on anybody\u2019s list right now.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A Duke University study has revealed how a previously undetectable form of PFAS pollution moved through Burlington\u2019s wastewater…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":319790,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[55670,3715,55131,192,163716,8976,163717,20200,79,134299],"class_list":["post-319789","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-burlington","tag-chapel-hill","tag-duke-university","tag-environment","tag-haw-river","tag-pfas","tag-pittsboro","tag-pollution","tag-science","tag-wral-specialists"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/319789","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=319789"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/319789\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/319790"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=319789"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=319789"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=319789"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}