Although the Pactiv Evergreen papermill in Canton shut down in June 2023, the company continues to operate the town’s wastewater management as part of an earlier agreement, and this month, state officials issued a violation for bacteria levels in the Pigeon River.
BPR’s Lilly Knoepp spoke to outdoors editor Holly Kays of the Smoky Mountain News about her reporting on this issue.
Lilly Knoepp: As the outdoor editor you cover a host of environmental issues including the Pactiv Evergreen papermill in Canton which closed in June 2023. It was recently announced that the mill has violated environmental standards again. What happened?
Holly Kays: Both of the violations which were issued over the over the past week have to do with violating Fecal coliform limits. Fecal coliform is a group of bacteria that includes disease-causing species like E coli. A lot of them aren't dangerous at all, but some of them are and that's why environmental agencies have limits on what kind of concentration you can have. There [were] a total of three days identified between the two violations in October and November of last year in which that concentration exceeded the allowed amounts and in all three cases. It was 50% over the limit.
Knoepp: What does that mean? Can that be harmful to people who are using that water?
Kays: Many of those bacteria aren't harmful but that group includes E coli for example, which really can be. The Environmental Protection Agency says that swimming diving or wading in water that's contaminated with the physical bacteria can cause a host of symptoms including diarrhea, vomiting, respiratory illness, and other health problems. Skin, ear, sinus, and wound infections can be caused by contact with that contaminated water.
Knoepp: So when you're talking about wading and swimming in this water, are you talking about the Pigeon River?
Kays: Yeah, that's the Pigeon that flows through the heart of Canton past the mill. That's where the plant discharges its wastewater once it’s been cleaned.
Knoepp: So even though the mill is shut down, it is still operating the town’s wastewater treatment plant. How long is it required to do that?
Kays: It has to keep doing that for at least two years following the closure. That dates back to an agreement between the mill and the town of Canton [that was] made all the way back in the 1960s.
Knoepp: How many environmental violations have happened since the mill closed?
Kays: There have been seven since the mill closed. Many for water quality related or wastewater discharge-related violations. There was also one that occurred during the closure process itself.
Knoepp: What happens when the mill gets these violations? Is there a fine for violating those environmental standards?
Kays: Different violations are treated differently. You would probably need to ask someone at the DEQ for a road map of exactly how all that works out. Some of these violations do have fines attached to them, others don't. For instance, the mill, three times in a row has gotten violations for failing its toxicity tests. It's a kind of quarterly test of wastewater discharge to make sure that, it's not toxic. It's failed that three times in a row, but there wasn't any fine attached to that because it was able to then pass it's two monthly follow-up tests.
Knoepp: How often has the mill violated these environmental concerns in total?
Kays: The mill has a very long file because , it predates the DEQ itself, but I can tell you that since May 2021, it has been issued 22 separate notices of violation.
Knoepp: Is there is there anything else that you're following or that we should look out for about updates on these violations from the mill?
Kays: A lot of it is just keeping our eyes on it and seeing what happens. And also, seeing what happens to the mill property itself and the town of Canton as it navigates this monumental change in history.
Note: This transcript has been edited for clarity and length.
