Children at two schools in Gray’s Creek have not been allowed to drink from the water fountains since it was discovered in 2017 that the schools’ well water is contaminated with cancer-causing PFAS “forever chemicals.”
The schools have instead used bottled water.
Now two things are happening to help the students and staff at Gray’s Creek Elementary and Alderman Road Elementary:
- As a temporary measure, Cumberland County this summer is putting filters on the schools’ water systems to extract the PFAS chemicals. The County Board of Commissioners approved this plan in January.
- By June 2026, more than 3.3 miles of water lines from the Fayetteville Public Works Commission should reach the schools. The project will cost $11.82 million, including the design, purchase of right-of-way, construction and other expenses. Construction is to begin in September.
The well water contamination of the schools — plus many other properties in the area — is thought to have come from the Chemours chemical plant about 4 miles from the schools. The county is suing Chemours because of its emissions of GenX and PFAS chemicals over the years.
Separate from this project, the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners is using its Gray’s Creek Water and Sewer District to bring water service to residents and business owners in the area whose wells have been contaminated. The water service will connect to this new PWC water main.
Pipeline’s route, and where the money comes from
The PWC’s board received an update on the water line plans on Wednesday from PWC Water Resources Engineer A.J. Riddle. The Fayetteville Public Works Commission is the city-owned utility company that provides electricity, water and sewer service to much of Fayetteville and surrounding communities.
The new pipe will be connected to an existing water main on N.C. 87 near a Food Lion grocery store shopping center at Sand Hill Road, Riddle said. It will have 10,800 feet of 16-inch diameter pipe and 6,700 feet of 12-inch pipe. The line will run along N.C. 87 to Alderman Road, where it will turn toward Alderman Road Elementary. The line will continue past Alderman Road Elementary and turn down School Road to Gray’s Creek Elementary, where it will end, he said.
This extension of water service to the schools is being paid for with a $12 million grant that the N.C. General Assembly included in the biennial state budget in 2023. The money was released to PWC in April 2024, PWC CEO Tim Bryant said.
Also in April of last year the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners and PWC announced their partnership to bring water to Gray’s Creek Elementary and Alderman Road Elementary.
It was difficult to arrange to get the $12 million grant, PWC Commissioner Ronna Rowe Garrett said following Riddle’s presentation.
“This has been going on for years, guys, so we’re at a climax, if you will. So I’m happy to see some movement,” she said. “It took a minute to get the people to the table, to have some agreement and to have some movement.” She praised the staff of PWC who helped make it happen.
Fayetteville City Council Member Derrick Thompson, who attended the PWC meeting Wednesday as the city council’s liaison, asked whether property owners along the route will be allowed to connect to the new water lines.
This is part of an effort to bring water to the community overall, CEO Bryant told him. “We’re working on it,” he said.
Four Cumberland lawmakers voted against the grant
The legislature in September 2023 approved a $29.6 billion state budget for the 2023-24 fiscal year. The $12 million grant to PWC for the Gray’s Creek water main was one line of a 625-page document. The budget was drafted by the Republican leaders of the General Assembly, and all but five Democratic lawmakers voted against it.
Then-Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, had disagreements with other items in the budget. For example, he felt it did not sufficiently support public schools, it had new laws that weakened the power of North Carolina governors, and it had a new law to hide lawmaker emails from the public. Cooper allowed the budget bill to become law without his signature.
The Democratic lawmakers who voted against the budget — and the $12 million PWC grant — included four Democrats from Cumberland County.
They are Democratic state Sen. Val Applewhite of Fayetteville, Rep. Charles Smith of Fayetteville, Rep. Frances Jackson of Hope Mills, and now-former Rep. Marvin Lucas of Spring Lake.
Republican state Sen. Tom McInnis of Pinehurst and Republican House Rep. Diane Wheatley of Cumberland County voted for the budget and the $12 million grant.
Senior reporter Paul Woolverton can be reached at pwoolverton@cityviewnc.com.
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