Waccamaw Siouan Water Testing Webpage

Image: Ashley Lomboy on a visit to the Ferguson Lab at Duke to learn about water testing.

The Waccamaw Siouan STEM Studio is partnering with the Duke University Superfund Research Center to offer PFAS testing of drinking water to Waccamaw Siouan tribal members.

PFAS stands for per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances, which are a group of chemicals used to make a variety of products. PFAS can be found in the environment, including in some surface and groundwater in the lower Cape Fear River region. Research is still taking place, but some human health concerns have been linked with exposure to PFAS. 

We are pleased to offer you the opportunity to participate in a new research study to have your drinking water tested for PFAS chemicals. In order to participate you must be 18 years of age or older, willing to provide a drinking water sample from your home, and be a member of the Waccamaw Siouan tribal community who lives in or within ½ mile of the Buckhead, St. James, Council or Boggy Branch communities. There is no payment needed to participate or to receive your results.

How it works:

1. Click this link and read and e-sign this consent form.

2. Once you have signed the consent form, you will complete a brief survey that asks questions about your home and drinking water. The survey will give you two choices: (1) pick up a kit from the tribal grounds and follow kit instructions to collect a water sample; or (2) sign up to have a STEM Studio-Duke team come to your home to take the sample for you on December 7, 2024.

3. If you let us know on the survey that you would like to receive a report with the results of your testing, this will be emailed or mailed to you in 3 months or less after the testing is done.

Please reach out to us with any questions at SuperfundCEC@duke.edu! You can also find more information below about PFAS and about other options for testing your drinking water below.

FAQs

1. What are PFAS?

PFAS are a group of chemicals called “forever chemicals” because they break down slowly and can build up in people, animals, and the environment over time. There are thousands of different chemicals known as PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances). 

2. Where do PFAS come from?

PFAS are used to make products we use in our homes and workplaces to make them non-stick, waterproof, and stain-resistant. PFAS can also be found within household products like non-stick cookware, personal care products like dental floss, and food packaging like pizza boxes. PFAS can move into air, soil, and water including drinking water wells.  

3. How do PFAS affect human health?

Scientists are still learning about PFAS and how they affect people. They have found that PFAS exposure may affect some people’s fertility (ability to get pregnant), change the ways that children’s bodies and brains develop, and increase the risk of some cancers. Scientists are especially concerned about adults, particularly pregnant people, who work in jobs where they are exposed to PFAS. People can be exposed to PFAS in many ways and the health effects of PFAS can be different at different stages of life. 

4. How do PFAS get into drinking water?

When products containing PFAS are used or spilled on the ground, the chemicals can move into soil and water, polluting private wells and public water systems. In eastern North Carolina, you may have heard of the PFAS chemical “GenX” which has been found in the Cape Fear River. PFAS may come from industrial sites (factories), landfills, hazardous waste disposal sites, or wastewater used on farm fields.  

People are most commonly exposed to PFAS through PFAS-contaminated drinking water. Water in some private wells and some public drinking water systems in North Carolina have been found to contain PFAS. 

Image: Waccamaw Siouan members Ashley Lomboy, April Patrick, and Coty Sutherland meet with Duke Superfund scientists Dr. Elizabeth Garza-Shapiro, Dr. Abbey Joyce and Program Coordinator, Chiara Klein, MEM.

5. How do I collect a sample of my drinking water for testing?

[video will be produced soon but not before STEM Day]

There are two ways to get your water tested through the Waccamaw Siouan STEM Studio’s partnership with Duke University: 

(1) Do the testing yourself: Tribal members can pick up a test kit from the Tribal Grounds. Scan the QR code or use the bit.ly link on the test kit to go to the testing website. Fill out a consent form. If you are eligible to participate (18+ years old and a member of the tribe), you will then complete a short survey. The survey will ask for your address, the source of your drinking water, and other questions. You will then use a water sample kit to collect a water sample from your home. Return the water sample to the Tribal Grounds.

(2) Sign up for a home visit: Waccamaw Siouan tribal members and their Duke partners can do a home visit on Saturday, October 26, 2024 to take participants through the steps described above. Each home visit should take no more than 30 minutes. Once the water samples are collected, they will be taken to Duke for testing. The results of each water sample will be given to each participant within three months through a letter or email (depending on what the participant selected on the survey).

If you are doing the testing yourself, here is how to collect a sample:

• Take 50 mL of water (about 1.5 ounces) from an unfiltered water tap (faucet) in your home. The water will be collected in a plastic tube found in the test kit. The sample needs to be returned to the Tribal Grounds.

• Your water sample will be taken to Duke for testing.

• Note: Each test kit will have a label on it with a participant ID number. The label will not include your name, address, or other identifying information.

6. What will Duke do to test my sample for PFAS?

Water samples will be tested for PFAS by the Ferguson laboratory at Duke. The lab will use a process called liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS-MS). 

7. If PFAS are found in my drinking water, what are my options for keeping myself and my family safe?

If you are concerned about PFAS in your drinking water, either from a well or from a public water system: 

• consider using an alternate water source for drinking, preparing food, cooking, brushing teeth, preparing baby formula, and any other activity when your family might swallow water

• consider installing an in-home water treatment system, either at the point where the water pipe enters your home or at the kitchen sink. More information is available at https://pfas-exchange.org/pfas-and-drinking-water-what-you-should-know/ 

If you are looking for other ways to decrease your exposure to PFAS:

• Choose cookware made of cast iron, stainless steel, glass, or enamel instead of Teflon.

• Avoid stain-resistant carpets and upholstery, as well as stain-resistant treatments and waterproofing sprays.

• More tips here: https://pfas-exchange.org/how-to-reduce-your-exposure-to-pfas/ 

8. Do I need to pay to have my drinking water tested through Duke?

No payment is required. 

9. Are there other options for testing my drinking water for PFAS?

You can also have your water tested by the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) as part of a consent order issued to a company called Chemours. You qualify for DEQ testing if you live in New Hanover, Brunswick, Columbus, or Pender county and have a private well as your primary drinking water source. You may also qualify if you have a well that is within the Cape Fear River floodplain, within 1/4 mile from a PFAS contaminated site/well, OR within 1/4 mile of a water or sewer line. If you choose to test through DEQ, you may be provided with alternate drinking water options, such as temporary bottled water provisions or an installed filtration system. For more details about DEQ testing, see here. 

10. Could it affect the value of my home if PFAS are found in my drinking water?

In July 2024, a new rule was made in North Carolina that affects homeowners who wish to sell a property that has a well. The rule requires homeowners to disclose if the well has been tested for quality, quantity, and pressure and the date of testing. This means that, if this or other studies find PFAS in your well water at high enough levels to impact human health, there is a risk that the value of your home may decrease if potential buyers ask to see the results of well water testing. 

Sources:

Environmental Protection Agency: https://www.epa.gov/pfas/our-current-understanding-human-health-and-environmental-risks-pfas 

https://www.epa.gov/pfas/meaningful-and-achievable-steps-you-can-take-reduce-your-risk

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences: https://factor.niehs.nih.gov/2024/7/feature/1-feature-well-water-test#:~:text=Update%20to%20North%20Carolina%20real,water%20was%20tested%20for%20contaminants 

North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality:

https://www.deq.nc.gov/news/key-issues/emerging-compounds/understanding-pfas 

https://www.deq.nc.gov/pfas-treatment-system-assistance-program

PFAS Exchange: 

https://pfas-exchange.org/what-are-pfas/

https://pfas-exchange.org/how-to-reduce-your-exposure-to-pfas/ 

https://pfas-exchange.org/pfas-and-drinking-water-what-you-should-know/