Wilmington council unanimously adopts resolution opposing Chemours Fayetteville Works expansion

Wilmington City Council on [date not specified] voted unanimously to adopt a resolution opposing a proposed expansion at Chemours’ Fayetteville Works plant after public testimony linking the company to persistent PFAS contamination in the Lower Cape Fear watershed.

Councilmember Celeste Andrews moved to adopt the resolution, which was seconded by Councilmember Joiner and approved by voice vote. The resolution asks the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality to deny permits or take other appropriate action to block the expansion.

Kemper Dett, who identified himself as the Cape Fear Riverkeeper and executive director of Cape Fear River Watch, urged council members to pass the measure. “This contamination has real consequences for our residents,” Dett said, describing a multiyear campaign to hold Chemours accountable for discharges into the Cape Fear River and groundwater that service about 500,000 residents in the Lower Cape Fear region. He said the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority has invested “over $80,000,000” in treatment upgrades and that the proposed expansion could raise production by about 20%, adding “more than an additional ton of PFAS annually.”

Dett also accused the company of resisting responsibility: he said Chemours had declined to pay for treatment upgrades, sued to stop community health studies, and lobbied against PFAS regulations. “The company has suggested it intends to continue to discharge these compounds,” he said, and urged the council to send a clear message to the state agency that Wilmington will not tolerate further contamination.

Councilmember Andrews, who introduced the resolution, said the city must press state regulators to prioritize public health; she made the motion to adopt without requesting amendments. The motion passed by unanimous voice vote.

The resolution is a formal expression of the city’s opposition; it does not itself impose regulatory restrictions on Chemours. The council directed that the city convey its position to the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality for consideration in any permitting or enforcement actions.

The council did not receive an on-the-record rebuttal from Chemours during the meeting. The transcript records clarifying claims by Kemper Dett about treatment costs and the proposed expansion’s potential emissions but does not document independent verification of the company’s projected output change or the emissions estimate within the meeting record.

The council moved on to other business after adopting the resolution; no additional votes on the issue were recorded at this session.