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Cases / Chemical pollution · United States · 2009

GenX chemical found in Cape Fear River, a DuPont and Chemours replacement for PFOA

Short record: the main facts, with sources. A full case file has not been prepared.

Nature's voice · report
No measurement of the harm done to me here is on record.
Did nature suffer? Not measured.
What the record lacks: 3 none on record · 2 insufficient · 1 not measured See the gaps

GenX, a replacement for PFOA, averaged 631 parts per trillion in the Cape Fear River in 2016, and conventional treatment could not remove it. DuPont and Chemours dispute the 2021 EPA finding that it is more toxic than previously thought.

What?
GenX, a replacement for PFOA associated with DuPont and Chemours, was found in the Cape Fear River, North Carolina, at an average of 631 ppt in 2016.
Where?
Cape Fear River, United States.
When?
Production from 2009; 2016 river measurement; 2021 EPA finding.
Who?
Gained
None on record
Lost
None on record
Harmed
  • Residents who rely on Cape Fear River water — Exposure to GenX in river water, per the 2016 average
Why?
Not stated in the sources reviewed.
How?
A replacement chemical that conventional water treatment did not remove; the sources reviewed do not describe the discharge route.
6 of 6 questions answered from the record

What happened

The record, in order.

According to the sources reviewed, GenX averaged 631 ppt in the Cape Fear River in 2016, and conventional treatment could not remove it.

The sources reviewed record that the US EPA said in 2021 that GenX was more toxic than previously thought, and that DuPont and Chemours dispute the finding.

DuPont said in a January 2021 release that DuPont, Corteva and Chemours had resolved legacy PFAS claims under a $4bn cap, with DuPont and Corteva paying $2bn of it.

Manufacturing Dive reported in 2023 that DuPont, Chemours and Corteva agreed to a $1.185bn PFAS settlement fund for US water systems.

    In court and with insurers

    Every proceeding and every insurer decision on record.

    Lawsuits and rulings

    1. 2020-12-17Defendant won
      Chemours lawsuit against DuPont (dismissal upheld)
      Not stated in the sources reviewed · Civil · Chemours → DuPont

      A court upheld the dismissal of Chemours' lawsuit against DuPont. The case concerns how liability was transferred in the corporate split. PFAS Project

    Insurers

    No insurer decision on record.

    What we don't know

    Undisclosed, unproven, untried: recorded as data.

    Nature

    • Not measured Harm to nature: The record holds no measurement of harm to nature.

    Record

    • Insufficient Reported but not verified: GenX replaced PFOA as a production chemical.
    • Insufficient Reported but not verified: DuPont paid about $4bn in dividends around the spin-off of Chemours, and a securities suit over the spin-off followed in 2019.
    • None on record The sources reviewed give no source link for the 631 ppt average or the 2021 EPA finding, and the companies dispute the finding.
    • None on record The sources reviewed do not say whether the 2023 settlement fund covers the Cape Fear water utilities.
    • None on record The sources reviewed do not state GenX sales revenue or whether the cleanup of the river is complete.

    Did the harm stop?

    Not stated in the sources reviewed.

    Who paid?

    Not stated in the sources reviewed.

    Sources

    Voices on record: ✓ Company or project— Government and regulators— Courts✓ Press and investigations— Communities and civil society— Researchers

    Company or project

    Press and investigations

    Connected cases

    Related matters, and cases linked to this one through the same organisations, with the role each played in both.
    Terms used on this page

    Science and environment

    PFOA (C8) and PFAS
    PFAS are a large family of human-made chemicals that persist in the environment and the body; PFOA, also called C8, is one of them and was used to make Teflon.

    Institutions

    EPA
    The US Environmental Protection Agency.

    Law and courts

    Arbitration
    A private dispute process in which an appointed arbitrator, instead of a court, decides the case.