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Greensboro Company Responds To Chemical Release In Cape Fear River Basin

KERI BROWN/WFDD

State and local officials are investigating the release of a likely human carcinogen in the Cape Fear River Basin. The source of the contaminant has been linked to a company in the Triad.

Greensboro water officials say they made the discovery of the chemical 1,4 dioxane during monthly sampling and notified the state Department of Environmental Quality about the contaminant spike in September.

The EPA's health advisory level for the chemical in drinking water is 0.35 parts per billion. On August 7, the city measured a level of more than 2,700 times that number at its wastewater treatment plant.

The city says Shamrock Environmental Corporation is the source.

Other communities downstream, including Pittsboro and Fayetteville, also detected elevated levels of the chemical.

Michael Borchers is with the city's water resources department. He says current testing shows levels are back to a normal low range, but there's still a lot they don't know.

“Now the question is working with the state, working with the industry to figure out what exactly went wrong and when it went wrong as it relates to their source control process and then, of course, what measures can we put in place to prevent this from happening again,” says Borchers.

Shamrock Environmental released a statement saying that in August it treated and discharged more than 15,000 gallons of non-hazardous wastewater from a customer that did not report it contained the chemical. The company says it was proactive and didn't violate any federal, state, or local water quality regulations.

The company adds, “We will continue to work with our customers, City of Greensboro, the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality and other regulatory bodies to ensure we meet the highest standards in our industry.” 

Meanwhile, the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality says it has initiated weekly testing at Greensboro's wastewater treatment plant.

Follow WFDD's Keri Brown on Twitter @kerib_news

Keri Brown is a multi-award winning reporter and host at 88.5 WFDD. She has been honored with two regional Edward R. Murrow awards for her stories about coal ash, and was named the 2015 radio reporter of the year by the Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas (RTDNAC).Although she covers a variety of topics, her beats are environmental and education reporting.Keri comes to the Triad from West Virginia Public Broadcasting, where she served as the Chief Bureau Reporter for the Northern Panhandle. She produced stories for the state's Public Television and Radio programs and was honored by the West Virginia Associated Press Broadcasters Association for her feature and enterprise reporting.She also served as an adjunct instructor at Wheeling Jesuit University and Bethany College in West Virginia. She worked with the Center for Educational Technologies in Wheeling, WV, and other NASA centers across the country to develop several stories about the use of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) concepts in the classroom.Keri's journalism career began at WTRF-TV 7 in Wheeling. She worked in several roles at the station, including the head assignment editor. She also was a field producer and assignment manager at WPGH-TV Fox 53 in Pittsburgh.Keri is a graduate of Ohio University. When she's not in the studio or working on a story, she enjoys watching college football with her family, cooking, and traveling.Keri is always looking for another great story idea, so please share them with her. You can follow her on Twitter @kerib_news.

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