ONWASA: Onslow drinking water not impacted by Cape Fear contamination.
The regional water system that provides public drinking water for most of Onslow County said the local water supply is not impacted by the chemical contamination found recently in the Cape Fear River in southeastern North Carolina.
“ONWASA is not interconnected with the Cape Fear Public Utilities System, nor can chemicals from the Cape Fear River migrate into ONWASA’s water supply,” the release states.
The StarNews has reported extensively on the issue and reports state the compound GenX has been found by researchers on three different occasions in the Cape Fear River, including in the Cape Fear Public Utility’s intake.
DuPont and spin-off company Chemours ceased production of C8 in the face of mounting legal challenges and a body of research indicating dangerous health effects.
ONWASA provides 2.8 billion gallons of water each year to 140,000 customers in unincorporated areas of Onslow County outside of the city limits of Jacksonville as well as the towns of Holly Ridge, Swansboro, Richlands (with the exception of a small section served by a private utility), and North Topsail Beach.
Unlike other systems that draw raw water from surface sources such as rivers or reservoirs, ONWASA uses deep, ancient underground aquifers for its water supply.
The deep aquifers have not been subjected to any known chemical contamination, according to the ONWASA news release.
Jacksonville’s annual drinking water quality report can be found on the city’s website.
Reporter Jannette Pippin can be reached at 910-382-2557 or jannette.pippin@jdnews.com.