Read the full article by Samantha Hall

Researchers from across North Carolina gathered at Duke University Sept. 28 for a symposium on an emerging class of contaminants called PFAS. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, are persistent compounds that have been found in the environment, including drinking water. NIEHS and the National Toxicology Program currently support several research studies related to PFAS.

The symposium, ‘Emerging Contaminants in the Ambient Environment: Perspectives to Guide North Carolina’s Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) Monitoring Network,’ was held at the Washington Duke Inn in Durham…

PFAS sparked much interest when researchers found high levels of GenX and other PFAS in the Cape Fear River in 2016. Lee Ferguson, Ph.D., an associate professor of environmental science and engineering at Duke University, said the discovery of GenX in the Cape Fear River led to conversations with lawmakers on how to address the issue of emerging contaminants.

‘How do we answer the question of avoiding a situation such as with GenX?’ he asked. ‘How do we keep this from happening again?’

Responding to the uncertainty around GenX in drinking water, the North Carolina (NC) General Assembly provided $5 million for the NC Policy Collaboratory to award grants to study GenX and other PFAS. With this funding, researchers at several universities, including NIEHS grantees, will study contamination and its effects in North Carolina.

This collaboration, called the Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substance Testing (PFAST) Network, aims to help policymakers and the public better understand human PFAS exposure. Jason Surratt, Ph.D., a professor of environmental sciences and engineering at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC), serves as program director of the PFAST Network…

The symposium featured several PFAS researchers. Detlef Knappe, Ph.D., from North Carolina State University, highlighted how wastewater from upstream communities can greatly affect downstream drinking water.

He remarked that during times of low stream flow, such as droughts, chemicals in upstream wastewater are less diluted and can reach higher concentrations. ‘We all live downstream,’ he said.”