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They detected clear differences in PFAS exposure in animals with different drinking water sources.įluoroethers, a type of PFAS associated with Fayetteville Works were found only in dogs given well water. In Gray's Creek, Belcher's team analyzed the blood of 31 dogs and 32 horses. They were either produced at or a byproduct of what was produced at the factory.īelcher's previous studies revealed elevated levels of contaminants in fish and alligators in the Cape Fear River Basin when compared to the same animals in different regions of the state. But two types recorded in people living near or downstream of the Chemours factory were distinctive, according to researchers. When researchers collected blood samples from 1,020 people in the Cape Fear River Basin from 2020 to 2021, they detected four types of PFAS compounds in nearly every person. Some have been linked to health problems, from decreased fertility in women and developmental delays in children to behavioral changes and increased cholesterol levels, according to the state Department of Health and Human Services. PFAS are tough, human-made compounds that can accumulate in people's bodies. Dogs and horses were of particular interest because they share environments with people, including drinking water sources. Mike Watters, a local advocate pushing for protections from pollution released by Fayetteville Works Facility, introduced Stewart to Scott Belcher, a North Carolina State environmental science professor.īelcher and his team had detected PFAS in the blood of many animal species in the Cape Fear River Basin.

Like Whisper, Wilbur drank well water contaminated with PFAS on Stewart's property. In 2018, Stewart had to euthanize a pig named Wilbur after he developed a massive testicular tumor. She was concerned that animals, as well as people, were exposed and raised that alarm to state regulators, Cumberland County commissioners and staff with Chemours, which now operates the factory. In 2017, Stewart started attending local forums about PFAS polluting the Cape Fear River area. The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality has stated the plant may have started releasing PFAS into the environment as early as the 1980s.

Gray's Creek sits a few miles north of the Fayetteville Works Facility. 'She was completely fine before I brought her down to this area,' said Stewart in an interview at her home, 'My vet said she had environmental allergies-but her cough is year round.' Six months after Whisper arrived in Gray's Creek, Stewart noticed the horse had developed a cough. Horses with it are often described as being 'wind-broke.' Whisper's condition is most similar to asthma in humans. But in a recent study prompted by concerned community members, North Carolina State University researchers detected the industrial compounds in dogs and horses, including Whisper, in Gray's Creek. That was the same year news broke that a factory near her Gray's Creek neighborhood for decades had released a family of industrial chemicals known as PFAS that polluted river water and drinking wells.Įxperts can't confirm that Whisper's cough is tied to PFAS exposure on Stewart's property. After arriving, the horse developed heaves-a common, allergic, respiratory horse disease characterized by chronic cough, nasal discharge and respiratory difficulty. Whisper had moved to Debra's property a few miles south of Fayetteville from another county in 2017.

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'C'mon, c'mon,' Stewart said, gently encouraging Whisper to step free of mud as she crunched on carrots in between coughs. But Whisper's thick, forced cough made the most pronounced sound. Flies shrilled as they bounced off Whisper's body and her hooves plopped in ground softened by an overnight rain.