ELIZABETH — Bladen County is considering taking legal action against the State of North Carolina. The county hopes to stop the state from shutting down Chemours, a company that employs nearly 1,000 people in the area.
“Yes, we are considering that,” Bladen County Board of Commissioners Chairman Charles Ray Peterson said.
Peterson said Bladen County has doubts about the legality of recent actions taken by state agencies against Chemours. The Department of Environmental Quality’s served Chemours a notice of violation on Wednesday, after threatening to suspend the company’s operating permit. Peterson said the Department of Health and Human Services statement that drinking water remains safe has the Board of Commissioners confused.
“We’ve got the same water as Brunswick County and New Hanover County, which all the state agencies have said — it is safe to drink,” Peterson said. “So we’re a little confused about what they’re doing.”
According to Peterson, Bladen County Commissioners have concerns about those employed by Chemours.
“We’ve got 500, 600 even 700 people we’ve got to protect, it’s their jobs we’re concerned about,” Peterson said.
Peterson himself worked for DuPont at the Fayetteville Works site shared by Dupont, Chemours and Kuraray. According to his Bladen County webpage, Peterson worked for Dupont for 26 years.
Peterson made his comments shortly after a hearing began in Bladen County Superior Court. Judge Douglas Sasser will hear a complaint and motion for injunction brought against Chemours by Michael Regan, secretary of the North Carolina DEQ, on behalf of the state of North Carolina.
Leslie Johnson, Bladen’s county attorney, confirmed his law firm had been authorized by the Board of Commissioners to start considering legal options. Johnson noted the injunction filed by the state would have shut down Chemours in 24-hours.
“On the one hand we are concerned with health, clean air, clean water, all that, but by the same token we can’t have 600 some people told they’re out of work with no notice,” Johnson said.
According to Peterson, the Board of Commissioners would have a more formal announcement “by the middle of next week.”
North Carolina vs. The Chemours Company by Ben Schachtman on Scribd
Notice of Hearing by Ben Schachtman on Scribd
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