Home Care In Burlington, NC

Revised train schedule is set to start July 10

Photo by Joseph Navin | Elon News Network

Elon University professor Ryan Johnson makes his way to work on Train 71 Piedmont from Durham at 7:02 a.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. He arrives at the Burlington train station at 7:40 a.m. and then bikes the remaining four miles to Elon’s campus where he teaches classes all day.

Through talking to a Burlington train station agent, Johnson learned the train he has been taking to work for the past five years will no longer stop at Burlington on the early morning route as well as two other stops, High Point and Salisbury — as of July 10.

“I understand making things express,” Johnson said. “But when they take routes that already exist that people depend upon for commuting, and then just remove them in order to save four minutes per station — they save four minutes — it struck me as really devastating. And now I may be forced to buy a car.”

Under the new train schedule, a stop at the Burlington station will not be included on Train 71 and Train 76, which are two out of 10 of the routes. Under the current train schedule, the first train from Raleigh arrives at Burlington Station before 8 a.m. Starting July 10, the first opportunity for commuters to get off at Burlington Station will be after 11 a.m.

Town of Elon Mayor Emily Sharpe said she believes this new schedule is “a real missed opportunity” for the Department of Transportation to support commuters and improve the North Carolina rail system.

“When we're taking away the ability for decent amounts of commuters to access work or play via train, I think that's just a real disservice,” Sharpe said.

The new schedule will include 10 daily routes from Raleigh to Charlotte every day in three hours, according to a North Carolina Department of Transportation press release.

Johnson said he regularly buys a 10 one-way trip ride pass between Durham and Burlington for $68. He said using this mode of transportation to commute to work is “very cheap compared to driving” and believes without this option, equity, sustainability and access are at risk for the Elon and Burlington communities.

“As someone who’s loved the train, supports the train and wants to increase access to the train for all North Carolinians —it really shocked me,” Johnson said.

John Stehlin, a professor at University of North Carolina, Greensboro, rides the train to work during the academic year. He researches the urban political economy as it relates to transportation and said the new train schedule is an issue of “regional equity.” Burlington and Salisbury are the lowest income communities in the train route, according to U.S. Census data.

“So you're cutting off that access, and the only real train that somebody could take for a traditional nine to five employment,” Stehlin said.

Beyond this concern, Stehlin believes increasing the frequency of trains would help the environment.

“It stitches these regions together in such a fundamental way and makes it possible for people to commute between these places without adding cars to the highway, without adding carbon emissions, without adding other pollution from driving,” Stehlin said.

Sharpe said her office reached out to Amtrak and other local officials but has not received much response. Though Sharpe is disappointed, she said she understands if low ridership from the Burlington station was a factor.

“Maybe they see that there's only a certain amount of people, and to them, it's not worth it for that amount of people,” Sharpe said. “I think that's unfortunate. I certainly understand if that is part of it. But it would have been nice for there to be more of an opportunity for discussion around it, rather than a decision being made without all of the key players involved.”

Liz Macam, communications officer for NCDOT’s Rail and Integrated Mobility Divisions, said she has spoken to several people from Elon University about the changes.

“We understand that some of the changes to some of the Piedmont schedules will have a negative impact on specific riders,” Macam said. “But overall, there were a variety of competing priorities and priorities and items that had to be taken into consideration.”

This is the first time the North Carolina Department of Transportation will be changing the train schedule in five years. According to Macam, the decision to change the schedule was made based on ridership data and trends by the North Carolina Department of Transportation board.

Macam declined to comment on whether the NCDOT is saving money by making fewer stops on certain routes.

According to NCDOT, more than 500,000 people used the NC By Train service last year, which is higher ridership than the company has seen in over 30 years. NC By Train is the train service that is operated by the NCDOT and its trains are staffed by Amtrak workers.

Johnson, Sharpe and Stehlin said they hope the NCDOT will consider not removing the stops at Burlington station.

Macam declined to comment on whether the board would consider adding the Burlington train station back into the two routes it's missing from.

“What I would like to see is more accessibility, even more service, a more frequent train,” Stehlin said. “Once you start having a train every hour because so many people want to use it, then maybe you start to have a couple of express trains, right? But I don't think we're there yet. And I don't know if kind of randomly excluding certain stops is the best way to grow the ridership that would get us there.”

There are 12,00 types of PFAS from a variety of sources, including the textile and chemical industries. (Illustration: EnviroScience Inc.)

Levels of toxic PFAS in Burlington’s wastewater have decreased more than 6,000% over the past three years and are expected to decline further, the result of a settlement agreement between the City and the Haw River Assembly finalized this week.

The agreement requires Burlington ensure its current and future industrial sources control PFAS discharges before they enter the city’s treatment plants or the Haw River, according to the Southern Environmental Law Center, which represented the Haw River Assembly. The agreement requires new and expanding industrial sources to disclose their use or discharge of PFAS. It also requires the city and its industrial sources to conduct extensive sampling using the latest methods to detect all PFAS, including precursor chemicals that degrade into measurable PFAS. This data will be available to the public on the city’s webpage.

Exposure to even very low levels of PFAS, short for per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances, has been linked to multiple health problems, including thyroid and liver disorders, kidney and testicular cancers, immune system deficiencies, obesity, high cholesterol, and reproductive and fetal development problems. There at least 12,000 types of PFAS, and they are found in water-, stain-, and grease-resistant products, like furniture, carpeting, clothing, microwave popcorn bags and fast-food packaging. PFAS are also found in AFFF firefighting foam.

The Haw River has long been a dumping ground for PFAS pollution from upstream textile and manufacturing industries, Haw Riverkeeper Emily Sutton said.

“This agreement is a huge win for a cleaner, safer Haw River and downstream communities,” said Kelly Moser, senior attorney for the Southern Environmental Law Center, in a prepared statement. “Now that we know the industrial sources of the PFAS in Burlington’s discharges, the city will take—and require its industrial sources to take—significant measures to prevent future pollution while reporting its results to the public.”

The City will also perform sampling to characterize the contribution of PFAS and other chemicals from residential customers. The City and the Haw River Assembly will continue to share sampling results, which Burlington will continue to post to its website.

A spokesperson for the City of Burlington called the agreement a “win-win for the City and HRA as well as the citizens of North Carolina residing in the Haw River watershed.”

In November 2019, the Haw River Assembly notified Burlington officials that it intended to sue over the illegal discharges of PFAS and 1,4-Dioxane, a probable carcinogen. Although PFAS and 1,4-Dioxane aren’t regulated in drinking water by the EPA or the state, the SELC argued the compounds are subject to provisions of the Clean Water Act, which covers rivers, streams and lakes.

In 2020, the parties formalized a memorandum of agreement that required Burlington to investigate potential sources of PFAS and 1,4-Dioxane that were discharging into the City’s wastewater treatment plants. The East plant, which was later found to be receiving PFAS in wastewater from industry, discharges directly into the Haw River, the drinking water supply for the Town of Pittsboro.

The South plant, which has issues with 1,4-Dioxane, discharges into Big Alamance Creek, a tributary of the Haw.

Burlington contracted with a third-party to investigate the sources of PFAS; the Haw River Assembly enlisted Duke University scientists to analyze the wastewater and identify the types of PFAS it contained.

The City pinpointed one of its industrial customers, Elevate Textiles, as its largest source of PFAS. The new settlement agreement requires the company to install a closed-loop system to capture contaminated wastewater from its production lines that make medical and military products. The new system will keep PFAS from entering Burlington’s sewer system.

Although those products require the use of PFAS, Elevate Textiles has started phasing out its use of the compounds for its other products, according to the SELC. That phase-out will be complete by June 15, 2025.

There are other known sources of PFAS that discharge to the Burlington wastewater treatment plants, including the textile manufacturer Shawmut Corporation. That company and future industrial customers will also be prohibited from discharging PFAS. (Unichem Specialty Chemicals reported it stopped production as of June 30.)

The Alamance County Landfill and the Republic Landfill are also PFAS sources. Leachate — liquid from the landfill that is collected in tanks — is sent to wastewater treatment plants. However, that leachate often contains PFAS from the disposal of consumer products. When rain falls on the landfill, it carries contaminants to the leachate system.

Reducing the amount of PFAS entering the wastewater treatment plant addresses another problem: biosolids. Utilities often contract with companies to haul off the sludge, which is then spread on agricultural fields as fertilizer. When it rains, the PFAS in the biosolids can seep into the groundwater, contaminating nearby wells — or run off the property and into creeks.

The NC Department of Environmental Quality regulates wastewater treatment plants, but the municipalities regulate their own industrial users. That arrangement can create a conflict because cities and counties depend in part on fees paid by those industries to discharge into the plants. In effect, utilities can be held economically hostage by industry, who can choose not to expand or locate in an area, and instead seek laxer regulations elsewhere.

Last week, Burlington’s South wastewater treatment plant discharged a slug of 1,4-Dioxane that measured 160 parts per billion into Big Alamance Creek — far above the state’s recommended level of 0.35 ppb for surface water. By the time the compound entered Pittsboro’s drinking water supply, concentrations downstream had been diluted to 11.9 ppb. The EPA has not established a maximum level of 1,4-Dioxane in drinking water, but has set a health advisory goal of 35 ppb. However, that level is far less protective than the goal set for the chemical in rivers and streams. Since traditional water treatment systems can’t remove the compound, utilities can’t achieve the more protective goal.

The recent incident was “a dramatic spike from previous levels reported by the city to Haw River Assembly,” according to the SELC, which ranged from less than one to a high of 14 parts per billion. “The investigation developed by SELC, Haw River Assembly, and the city to identify the city’s PFAS sources lays the groundwork for the city’s investigation into the source of the recent spike of 1,4-dioxane,” the SELC wrote.

That investigation is ongoing.

The City of Burlington, North Carolina, has reached a agreement to prevent huge amounts of forever chemicals from getting into the Haw River. That change will also impact the Cape Fear Watershed, and it’s a cutting-edge change compared to cities around the country.

When Burlington tested its water in 2019 because of a state mandate, it found something shocking: PFAS levels in the Haw River were over 33,000 parts per trillion.

The man-made contaminants, known as forever chemicals, are found in thousands of consumer products. They’re used in manufacturing, and they were coming out of the city’s wastewater treatment plant at frightening levels, given the high level of toxicity with even very small amounts.

The Haw is a tributary of the Cape Fear River, meaning that pollution reached the drinking water of nearly a million people.

Geoff Gisler is an attorney for the Southern Environmental Law Center, which filed a claim against Burlington on behalf of the Haw River Assembly, a nonprofit founded in the early 1980s to protect the river and Jordan Lake. They pushed the city to enforce the Clean Water Act to reduce pollution coming from the wastewater treatment plant.

“The way that the law is set up, is that it gives community groups and citizen groups the chance to go to step into the state's shoes when the state's not enforcing the law,” Gisler said.

That 2019 notice of intent to sue led to testing. The city figured out how bad the pollution was, and eventually learned exactly who the biggest polluters were.

Bob Patterson, Burlington’s water resources director, said the litigation and settlement were really a collaborative effort. The final part of the settlement changed the city permits to require the major polluters — which are two textile manufacturers — to use closed-loop systems. That means their contamination doesn’t end up in the treatment plant, and doesn’t end up in the river.

"Both are what are called 'significant industrial users,'" Patterson explained. "We have an industrial pretreatment program that is, overseen by DEQ. So we have local control, we do local permits for our industries."

That meant the city was able to modify its permits for the factories, requiring them to clean up their wastewater before sending it to the treatment plant.

These changes drastically reduced the amount of PFAS entering the water. Instead of 33,000 parts per trillion in the Haw, the latest tests show under 600 parts per trillion.

But Patterson said there’s still work to do — the other biggest polluters are the two landfills in the area: “They don't create or produce PFAS either, it's in everything that is brought to the landfills, that decomposes and the liquid is collected from the bottom.”

Ongoing research will determine how to handle that leachate from the bottom of landfills and, perhaps, destroy the forever chemicals. But there isn't a process set in stone for leachate quite yet.

Regardless, advocates are thrilled with the progress. Haw River Keeper Emily Sutton says Burlington was a great partner in solving the problem — and that other cities should take note.

“So I'm hopeful that this can be a roadmap for other utilities, and the state will require wastewater treatment plants to really understand what is coming through their wastewater systems, and how to stop it," Sutton said.

Other wastewater treatment plants along the river are continuing to pollute it, including Greensboro and Reedsville, which both have discharge permits coming up for public review. While every wastewater treatment plant likely deals with PFAS and 1,4 dioxane to some degree, it's those in cities with significant manufacturers that are often the largest polluters.

The legal strategy of modifying permits has benefits. It doesn’t require public institutions to buy or install expensive filters. The cost falls on the manufacturer that's using or creating PFAS, rather than on the consumer. That's a far cry from past problems in the Cape Fear region, where Chemours put GenX in the river, and it fell on drinking water utilities like CFPUA to try and filter it out.

Patterson said the textile plants in his city took the news fairly well. They had questions, but they were aware that PFAS are on their way out of fashion, so to speak.

“They've been working with the chemical industries to develop, as I understand it, alternative chemicals that are thought to be much safer than the PFAS compounds that provide the same benefits that consumers are used to," he said.

Patterson said he’s been getting calls from wastewater treatment plants and engineering firms across the country who want to learn from what they did. Burlington is on the cutting edge of enforcement, it seems.

But Emily Sutton wants to see this kind of regulation come from the state.

“There's a process here that the state needs to be requiring for every discharger," she said. "It should not be on the backs of small environmental nonprofits and our amazing team at Southern Environmental Law Center to figure this out to protect our communities and to enforce the Clean Water Act. The state knows how to do this, they are required to do this. And they need to be holding polluters accountable.”

Federal contractors believe unrelated sources also contributing to east Burlington pollution

A Cold War-era tunnel below the former Tarheel Army Missile Plant in east Burlington is a newly discovered source of toxic chemicals at the facility, according to a recent report by federal contractors. And based on sampling of a neighborhood stream, there could be other unrelated contamination sources near the plant that further burden the predominantly nonwhite and low-income neighborhood.

Tunnel water, soil and groundwater at the TAMP contain high levels of chemicals associated with chlorinated solvents, which were commonly used at the facility. These include TCE, PCE, benzene and vinyl chloride, all of which have been linked to cancer.

The 22-acre facility containing more a dozen dilapidated buildings and surrounded by a chain-link fence, closed in 1992. It has been vacant ever since.

NC Newsline published a special investigative series in 2021 on the history of the plant, where Western Electric conducted top-secret research and built Nike missile guidance systems on behalf of the Department of Defense.

Those weapons-related activities left serious environmental and public health hazards that still persist. A half dozen homes and duplexes abut the plant, which looms over their backyards.

The military is responsible for cleaning up the contamination below ground. David Tsui, who bought the property in 2018, is in charge of cleaning up contamination above ground, such as lead and asbestos in the buildings.

State and federal records indicate that Tsui would like to develop the site, not just for warehouse storage, but possibly apartments. To clean up the property for residential use would be a herculean — and expensive — undertaking because of the extensive pollution.

The tunnel runs north-south between Buildings 2 and 16, the latter of which backs to homes along Hilton Road. Contractors believe the tunnel is carrying contaminated groundwater from other parts of the property and discharging the pollutants beneath the neighborhood. Contractors cautioned that Tsui, or future property owners, not “dewater the tunnel” without further study. Otherwise, the tunnel would siphon more contaminated groundwater, which would need to be treated before being released. That would require a state permit, and one from the City of Burlington to send the treated water into the sewer system.

Deed restrictions currently forbid dewatering.

Hazardous vapors that off-gas from the contaminated groundwater are likely present inside many of the TAMP buildings, the report said. That’s important because Tsui has repeatedly failed to secure the site, state records show, and unhoused people live inside the buildings, whose roofs are also caving in.

Investigators have long known that contaminated groundwater has migrated from the TAMP property to beneath the neighborhood. Based on high solvent levels in the soil, the NC Department of Health and Human Services pleaded with the Army six years ago to test indoor air at nearby residences. Sampling did not occur until last year, and was not done indoors.

Outdoor sampling, which is also an acceptable testing method, was conducted near foundations of five properties. The results showed no solvent vapor levels above regulatory standards. Total petroleum hydrocarbons – a mixture of chemicals found in gasoline, fuel oil and similar products – were detected, but “there is no standard for this analyte,” the report reads, and the contractors made no further recommendations.

Solvents have entered a small, shallow stream that runs through the neighborhood and eventually feeds the Haw River, sampling data show. But based on monitoring well testing conducted last year, federal contractors believe additional sources could be contributing to the pollution. This includes two previous dry-cleaning sites, the old AT&T/Lucent building and the former Elder Hosiery Mills plant, which are within a block of the TAMP.

Federal contractors also suggested indoor air should be tested at the former Lucent building because of “vapor intrusion concerns,” according to the report.

Contractors also recommended further studies to understand the plume of underground contamination leaving the northwest portion of the TAMP that includes the Lucent property.

At many other sites contaminated with chlorinated solvents — dry cleaners, for example — the soil is excavated to eliminate the original source. If done correctly, that cuts off the contaminant flow and companies can tackle the groundwater pollution more easily.

For the TAMP site, federal contractors estimated the amount of soil to be excavated to range from 90 to 230 tons, although it could be more based on the margins of contamination. Nonetheless, these are “relatively small volumes that could be excavated quickly and effectively,” the report said.

If the site is excavated, it would be necessary to protect the neighborhood from contaminated dust and other potential pollution sources.

The NC Department of Environmental Quality approved the 2,200-page report’s findings. Next, the contractors will development cost estimates for several cleanup methods, including excavation only and excavation plus groundwater treatment. Those estimates could be finalized by the end of the year.

Bed Bath & Beyond will close its doors to the Burlington community April 8. The store is one of five North Carolina locations to end its retail operations in the state — the other locations include Raleigh, Gastonia, Greenville and Hickory. The chain is set to close in more than 280 locations across the nation in the coming months.

The home furnishings store, located in Burlington’s University Commons, sells items such as bedding, storage containers, kitchenware and bathroom needs. It’s usually popular during Elon University’s student move-in day at the beginning of each school year. Elon News Network visited the Burlington location two times. Employees at the store did not provide further comment on the closing.

Elon senior Wellsley Cohen said she’s been shopping at the Burlington location since she was a freshman, and worries that students in the future will encounter problems at other stores during future move-in days.

“It’s going to make it so a lot of students shop at Target, Walmart and TJMAXX, and it's going to be chaotic with the amount of people in those stores during move-in,” Cohen said.

Cohen said that closing this store will affect the local community.

“I feel like their closing is negative for the Elon community, especially because the student body is expanding,” Cohen said. “There’s going to be one less store for new students to shop at.”

An Elon parent Facebook page shared the news that the store was closing. One Elon parent, Marsha Jane DiFrango, said that she has seen many Elon students shop at the location within the past four years and thinks it as an important business in the community.

“A large portion of students shop there, and I can’t believe that Elon driven businesses haven't warranted keeping that store open,” DiFrango said.

Bed Bath & Beyond customer and Elon alum Corry Wilder ’81 also said closing this location will hurt the move-in process for Elon students.

“It’s sad,” Wilder said. “It's another big store closing. It’s going to affect the economy for sure, and a lot of students use it to buy things to move in, so they’ll be upset.”

The University Commons shopping plaza also includes two other stores with homegoods available for the community to purchase, including Target, TJMAXX and Ross.