State officials received surface water test results from the recreational lake at Camp Dixie in Bladen County showing concentrations of GenX of 620 parts per trillion. Surface water results from Marshwood Lake in Cumberland County showed concentrations of GenX at 915 parts per trillion while the Hall Park baseball field well water showed concentrations of 53.6 parts per trillion.
The lake at Camp Dixie was tested Oct. 19, and the Hall Park ballfield and Marshwood Lake were tested Oct. 17. All three were tested because members of the community requested they be tested during an information session. The lakes are used for swimming and other recreational purposes, while the well serves as drinking water for people using the ballfield.
“We are leaving no stone unturned to determine how far and wide the GenX contamination goes into the community,” said Michael Regan, secretary of the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, little exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) such as GenX occurs during swimming, bathing or showering. Only a small amount of PFAS can get into your body through the skin.
Based on the CDC guidance, current knowledge of GenX and the estimated dose that campers would receive through accidentally swallowing water from the lake while swimming, DHHS has concluded that recreational exposures to GenX at the levels measured at the Camp Dixie lake are not expected to harm peoples’ health.
Neither the Camp Dixie lake nor Marshwood Lake are sources of drinking water. Camp Dixie receives its drinking water from a county public water supply system.
The concentration of 53.6 parts per trillion found in the well at the Hall Park ballfield is below the state’s provisional drinking water health goal. The well is not being used for drinking water but may continue its use for irrigation.
DEQ is working with the state’s Department of Health and Human Services, or DHHS, and the Bladen and Cumberland County health departments to notify people in the community of the results and determine the next steps.
More information about the state’s ongoing testing and investigation of fluorinated compounds can be found at: https://deq.nc.gov/news/hot-topics/genx-investigation.
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