GenX Contamination Research Continues Three Years After Breaking Story

WUNC | By Frank Stasio,

Published June 5, 2020 at 12:51 PM EDT

Discharge from the Chemours' Fayetteville Works site was linked to high quantities of toxic chemical compounds in the Cape Fear River three years ago. The region is still feeling the effects of the contamination.

Three years ago this weekend, the public learned about the presence of a toxic chemical compound known as GenX in the Wilmington-area drinking water.

Host Frank Stasio talks with Vince Winkel, reporter for WHQR in Wilmington, about the state of GenX contamination in the Cape Fear River and surrounding communities.

The Wilmington Star News broke the story, highlighting the research that a North Carolina State University lab — led by Detlef Knappe — conducted on the drinking water and its links to the discharge from Chemours’ Fayetteville Works plant into the Cape Fear River. Local government officials are still fighting for greater regulation of toxins like GenX. Researchers are also still conducting studies on humans and wildlife to determine the long-term effects of the compound in living systems.

Host Frank Stasio speaks with WHQR reporter Vince Winkel about the most recent updates and research on GenX.

Frank Stasio

Longtime NPR correspondent Frank Stasio was named permanent host of The State of Things in June 2006. A native of Buffalo, Frank has been in radio since the age of 19. He began his public radio career at WOI in Ames, Iowa, where he was a magazine show anchor and the station's News Director.

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Kaia Findlay

Kaia Findlay is a producer for The State of Things, WUNC's daily, live talk show. Kaia grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in a household filled with teachers and storytellers. In elementary school, she usually fell asleep listening to recordings of 1950s radio comedy programs. After a semester of writing for her high school newspaper, she decided she hated journalism. While pursuing her bachelor’s in environmental studies at UNC-Chapel Hill, she got talked back into it. Kaia received a master’s degree from the UNC Hussman School of Journalism, where she focused on reporting and science communication. She has published stories with Our State Magazine, Indy Week, and HuffPost. She most recently worked as the manager for a podcast on environmental sustainability and higher education. Her reporting passions include climate and the environment, health and science, food and women’s issues. When not working at WUNC, Kaia goes pebble-wrestling, takes long bike rides, and reads while hammocking.

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