N.C. commission seeks public comments on polluter-written PFAS and 1,4-dioxane rules

Proposed rules do not require reduction of toxic pollution into drinking water

CHAPEL HILL, N.C.—Proposed polluter-written rules regarding PFAS and 1,4-dioxane announced by the state for public comment today do not require polluters to reduce their toxic discharges into drinking water supplies, the Southern Environmental Law Center said. The rules proposed by the North Carolina Environmental Management Commission impose no consequences even if polluters increase their toxic pollution.  

“Our communities have suffered from decades of toxic chemical exposure, yet the EMC now asks North Carolinians to sit back and trust that polluters will suddenly and voluntarily stop dumping toxic chemicals across our state,” said Hannah Nelson, attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center. “The proposed rules were not written to protect our families—they were written to protect polluters.”  

The public can submit comments on these proposed rules from March 16 to June 15 by email at [email protected] and through in-person hearings to be held on the following dates:  

• April 7, 2026 at 6:00PM: Ferguson Auditorium, AB-Tech Community College, 19 Tech Drive, Asheville, N.C., 28801 
• April 9, 2026 at 6:00PM: Catawba County St. Stephens Branch Library, 3225 Springs Road, Hickory, N.C., 28601  
• April 14, 2026 at 6:00 PM: Fayetteville Technology Community College, Tony Rand Student Center multipurpose room, 2220 Hull Rd. Fayetteville, N.C., 28303 
• April 20, 2026 at 6:00 PM: Archdale Building, Ground Floor Hearing Room, 512 N. Salisbury Street, Raleigh, N.C., 27604 
• April 23, 2026 at 6:00 PM: Wilmington City Hall at Skyline Center, 1^st Floor Conference Center, 929 North Front St., Wilmington, 28401 
• May 12, 2026 at 6:00 PM: Percy H. Sears Applied Technologies Building Auditorium, Guilford Technical Community College, 1201 Bonner Dr., Jamestown, N.C., 27282 
   

The text of the rules is available here.  

A timeline of public records regarding these proposed polluter-written PFAS and 1,4-dioxane rules is available here. 

More than 3.5 million North Carolinians drink water contaminated with unsafe levels of PFAS, and more than one million drink water threatened by cancer-causing 1,4-dioxane. Harmful levels of PFAS have been detected in North Carolina fish and crops, and in certain parts of the state, women and children are told to refrain from eating even one fish to protect themselves.  

Both PFAS and 1,4-dioxane are harmful to our health at incredibly low levels and cannot be removed by conventional drinking water treatment. Stopping these harmful chemicals at their industrial source before they reach our rivers, creeks, and drinking water supplies protects the health of families and communities and ensures that polluters pay instead of downstream communities and drinking water treatment facilities.  

The N.C. Environmental Management Commission voted to move these polluter-written rules forward in its meeting on January 8, 2026. The EMC is made of 15 members—three of which are appointed by the Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger (R-Guilford and Rockingham Counties), three appointed by the Speaker of the House Destin Hall (R-Caldwell and Watauga Counties), two appointed by state Commissioner of Agriculture Steve Troxler (R) and seven appointed by Governor Josh Stein (D).