United Nations experts are raising concerns about chemical giants DuPont and Chemours, saying they've violated human rights in North Carolina.

At a virtual news conference this week, a UN representative said these companies have been releasing harmful PFAS chemicals into the environment near the lower Cape Fear River.

Emily Donovan, co-founder of the group Clean Cape Fear, said more than 300 different chemicals in their water led them to seek help from the UN. She said getting clean and safe drinking water has been an issue for decades, and local residents continue to suffer the consequences.

"The amount of sicknesses and illnesses happening in our region is incredibly depressing and hurtful," said Donovan.

Last fall, she said, the UN wrote to the companies expressing concern. In their responses, DuPont denied responsibility for a Fayetteville Works Plant, a suspected contamination source, and Chemours claimed it has reduced its PFAS releases and exposure.

Donovan said they're still figuring out how widespread the pollution is. They know it affects eight counties, about a half-million people and around 10,000 wells. With Chemours planning an expansion and perhaps even importing international waste, she said the situation is becoming dire for local communities.

"We are tired of being a sacrifice zone," she added.

Dr. Marcos Orellana, special rapporteur on toxics and human rights for the United Nations, warns that PFAS chemicals are a danger worldwide. He criticized companies that refuse to acknowledge the potential dangers and don't do more to protect residents.

"The concerns in regards to Cape Fear and the Fayetteville Works are extremely concerning," he said, "because of disinformation spread by companies, because of the dumping and pollution, inadequate controls that have affected people's access to clean drinking water."

The letter called on the companies to take action to prevent PFAS exposure and protect local residents. The UN has also contacted state and federal regulators, demanding that they seek greater accountability from polluters. Orellana said the U.S. government has yet to respond.


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An Iowa county has received money as part of a $48.5 million federal grant to protect the rusty patched bumble bee and preserve its habitat.

The grant is aimed at restoring endangered species and their habitats across the country. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has allocated more than $635,000 to Winneshiek County to protect the bee and its native surroundings.

Pam Mackey-Taylor, director of the Iowa Chapter of the Sierra Club, said the rusty patched bumble bee is a critical part of the natural ecosystem.

"It pollinates prairie plants, pollinates garden plants, fruit trees, ornamental plants," Mackey-Taylor explained. "It's important to keep the pollinator services from the rusty patched bumble bee available and are certainly necessary."

The Fish and Wildlife Service is awarding more than $48 million to 19 states for habitat conservation projects, to benefit 80 endangered and at-risk species across the country.

The bee lives on prairie and marsh lands and makes its colonies underground. Mackey-Taylor pointed out the grant money will be used to make sure the areas the bee relies on most will be protected from invasive species, which will allow the things they need to thrive.

"Blooming flowers throughout the spring, summer and fall so that there's a nectar source," Mackey-Taylor noted. "And make sure the bees are protected from sprays, fungicides, herbicides and insecticides."

Pesticide overspray and drift can often be a problem for Iowa farmers trying to manage weeds and pests, which could affect the bee habitat the grant is designed to protect.

Environmental groups in Texas are backing a proposed global plastics treaty set to be finalized by the end of the year.

The treaty aims to minimize plastic's effect on the environment and make manufacturers responsible for managing plastic waste. The treaty also encourages the use of reusable options, such as single-use bags, straws and utensils.

Cheyenne Rendon, senior policy officer for the Society of Native Nations, said supporters need to focus on the people the treaty will serve.

"The United States has already conveyed that they're not willing to operate out of current existing laws," Rendon pointed out. "Although their approach is, they are for the global plastics treaty, it's at the lowest denomination of a treaty as possible. So that's why we have to lead with this with a human-based approach. How are we going to take care of not only our planet, but our people?"

Texas is one of the largest producers of fossil fuels and plastic in the nation, with most coming from the Houston Ship Channel. It is the second-largest petrochemical complex in the world and surrounded by low-income communities of color. People in the area have life expectancies up to 20 years shorter than those in white communities just 15 miles away.

Amnesty International recently deemed the Houston Ship Channel a "sacrifice zone," meaning residents suffer devastating physical and mental health consequences, along with human rights violations from living in pollution hotspots.

Yvette Arellano, founder of the group Fenceline Watch, said they have promoted environmental change at the local and state levels for years. They argued by backing the plastics treaty, they are taking their concerns nationally and globally.

"We're in collaboration with over 300 other organizations, from grassroots to academics and legal organizations," Arellano explained. "Trying to uplift the severe human rights violations that petrochemical companies and the fossil fuel industry, along with false solutions they're bringing along."

Arellano added there is no way for people living in the area to escape the poison.

"Whether we are at home, outside gardening or spending leisure time with family, whether we're at school at the grocery store, at the post office," Arellano outlined. "We're consistently and continuously being poisoned with full and free license to, on behalf of our regulatory agencies."

The groups will testify at the United Nations later this year.


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Hurricane season is here, and conservationists are shining a light on the role salt marshes play in protecting coastal North Carolina communities.

Studies find that salt marshes absorb flood waters and wave energy, reducing property damage in nearby areas by an average 20%.

Charlie Deaton, a habitat protection biologist at the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries, explained what salt marshes do to help areas build climate resilience.

"They're good at helping us actually mitigate some of the carbon we've released into the atmosphere, and they are good for community resilience, too," he said. "They protect landward shorelines from erosion, and salt marshes' larger scales can actually reduce the impacts of storm surge and reduce flooding from that."

North Carolina has about 220,000 acres of salt marshes, but the protections they offer are dependent on their health and preservation. Coastal development, pollution and climate change all pose threats to these ecosystems. Deaton said plans are in place to help restore them. The South Atlantic Salt Marsh Initiative aims to save 1 million salt-marsh acres, from North Carolina to Florida.

As hurricane activity is projected to increase in frequency and intensity, the role of salt marshes in protecting coastal communities becomes even more critical. Deaton said the evidence is clear that restoring these landscapes is urgent if we want to keep them.

"And if we start to lose our salt marshes," he said, "we're going to start to lose our nursery areas, and that's going to have negative impacts on our fish stocks and our fishing communities that depend on them, not to mention the direct community resilience benefits of preventing erosion and reducing storm surge."

At the state level, North Carolina also has a Salt Marsh Action plan to enhance and rejuvenate salt marshes. Deaton emphasized the importance of coupling these efforts with others that reduce pollution to safeguard coastal communities.

Support for this reporting was provided by The Pew Charitable Trusts.


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