Home Care In Pittsboro, NC

Pittsboro is urging its customers to conserve water after the City of Burlington detected a spike of a dangerous chemical in its discharge upstream on the Haw River.

Burlington measured 1,4-dioxane levels of 545 parts per billion in a sample it took Tuesday morning from its South Burlington Wastewater Treatment Plant’s discharge, a spike from 2.4 ppb the day before.

Burlington officials reported the results to Pittsboro and other downstream utilities Wednesday afternoon and ordered Apollo Chemical, the Burlington company it believes may be responsible, to cease production.

The chemical, 1,4-dioxane, is a likely human carcinogen that is difficult for utilities to remove from drinking water. It is used as an industrial solvent stabilizer. The Environmental Protection Agency has set a health advisory goal of 35 ppb for 1,4-dioxane in finished drinking water. North Carolina has a target level of 0.35 ppb in drinking water sources.

In a Thursday morning press release, Pittsboro officials said the town immediately stopped drawing most water from the Haw upon learning of the release Wednesday afternoon.

They also took a sample of the town’s water and expect to have results back on Friday. Pittsboro will take daily samples and have them tested quickly until they are sure the slug of 1,-4-dioxane has moved past.

When spills occur from Burlington, as they have several times in recent years, the high level of 1,4-dioxane tends to move downstream in a “slug.”

In some past events, it’s taken about a week for the water containing high levels of the chemical to make its way downstream to Pittsboro and then several more days for it to fully pass by the town. The Haw is flowing quickly right now, though, and Pittsboro is conducting modeling to figure out when the chemical could reach the town’s intake.

“Because of our lack of testing data, we are unsure of what impact this release has, is having, or will have on our water system,” Colby Sawyer, a town spokesman, wrote in a press release.

As in past events, Pittsboro is offering free reverse osmosis and ultraviolet-treated drinking water at Chatham Marketplace, 480 Hillsboro St., Pittsboro. Customers can use the code 64261 to fill containars for free and are asked to bring jugs and bottles from home.

By cutting the amount of water being drawn from the Haw to the minimum amount needed to keep their water system working, Pittsboro official are hoping to prevent 1,4-dioxane from entering their system.

That’s why Pittsboro is asking its customers to cut back on non-essential uses like watering their lawns, washing cars or filling swimming pools.

“We are fortunate to have received test results from Burlington so early in this event. We hope this early notification has provided a warning in enough time for us to take protective action,” Sawyer wrote in the release.

That’s a significant difference from a September event, when Burlington wasn’t able to notify Pittsboro of a spill until eight days after the release started because of a backlog at the lab Burlington uses. Burlington has spent $115,000 conducting daily tests since a July 2023 release of 1,4-dioxane.

Burlington was originally using “expedited” lab testing for 1,4-dioxane, which has a two- to four-day turnaround. After the September event, the city decided to start using “rush” testing, which has a one- to two-day turnaround, said John Vernon, a city spokesman.

In a press release, Burlington pointed to Apollo Chemical, a local chemical manufacturer, as a potential source of this week’s spike.

Apollo’s chemicals are used to clean and remove grease from hard surfaces, lift stains out of fabrics, eliminate odors and repel oil and water, according to a draft wastewater permit prepared for the company.

Burlington started collecting daily samples of Apollo’s wastewater after a July 2023 spill, reserving them in case of any future 1,-4 dioxane releases. With the latest spike, the city sent those samples for a rush analysis to determine the level of the chemical in them.

Burlington ordered Apollo to halt its production Wednesday as soon as it received the test results. City officials are meeting with the company Thursday, Vernon said in a press release.

Apollo would not typically be part of Burlington’s pre-treatment program, in which the city regulates the discharge of industrial wastewater into its own wastewater plant. Companies that are automatically part of the program must discharge certain amounts of wastewater or belong to certain industries, and Apollo meets neither of those qualifications.

But because the July 2023 release affected the city’s wastewater, it was able to start working to bring Apollo into the program. That would allow Burlington to better control what Apollo is discharging, namely by requiring it to control 1,4-dioxane.

Burlington is awaiting state approval of a new permit for Apollo’s pre-treatment program, it said in a press release. The N.C. Department of Environmental Quality must review and approve that permit, which could go into effect by March 1.

Under the permit, Burlington would require Apollo to sample its discharge for 1,4-dioxane on a weekly basis.

The company will also need to submit a “1,4-dioxane minimization plan” to the city by April 15, which will include evaluation of substitutes for the chemical in its production process, changes in those processes that could limit releases of the chemical and preventing discharges from production lines that use a “significant” amount of 1,4-dioxane.

“These items are not required of our other permitted industries,” Vernon wrote in an email.

This story was produced with financial support from the Hartfield Foundation and Green South Foundation, in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners, as part of an independent journalism fellowship program. The N&O maintains full editorial control of the work. If you would like to help support local journalism, please consider signing up for a digital subscription, which you can do here.

This story was originally published January 25, 2024, 1:26 PM.

Briefs

Update at 12:20 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 26.: The Town of Pittsboro released the first sampling results for 1,4-Dioxane:

The EPA has set a health advisory goal of 0.35 ppb of 1,4-Dioxane in rivers and streams and 35 ppb in drinking water. The EPA has not yet established a legally enforceable maximum level for drinking water. The 35 ppb figure is not as protective as that for rivers and streams. That’s not a scientific rationale, but a technical one: Because of the cost of upgraded treatment systems — in the tens of millions of dollars — most utilities could not achieve the more stringent goals.

“The Town is cautiously optimistic with these results, which indicate whether the “slug,” or concentrated area of 1,4 dioxane, has passed us and we had minimal uptake, or it is just now reaching us,” wrote town spokesman Colby Sawyer, in a press release. Additional test results are expected tomorrow. “Once we receive these results, we can determine if our 1,4 dioxane concentration is moving in a positive or negative direction.”

Update at 7:48 a.m.: Because of the uncertainty about the presence of 1,4-Dioxane in the town’s drinking water, the Town of Pittsboro and Chatham Marketplace, 480 Hillsboro St, are offering free reverse osmosis (RO) treated water to Pittsboro water customers and customers of Aqua NC who receive their water from the Town of Pittsboro. Customers may use Code 64261 to fill jugs and bottles for free. Hours are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sundays.

Customers should bring jugs and bottles from home, as only a limited supply is available for purchase at the store.

The Town of Pittsboro has ramped up its drinking water testing after the City of Burlington discharged a slug of toxic chemical 1,4-Dioxane — 1,300 times the EPA’s health advisory goal — into the Haw River. It is the second time Burlington has reported contaminating Pittsboro’s drinking water supply this year.

In a press release issued late Friday afternoon, Pittsboro spokesman Colby Sawyer said Burlington officials had notified the town at 1:30 p.m. that routine testing showed high levels of 1,4-Dioxane — 459 parts per billion — had been discharged from one of its wastewater treatment plants on Sept. 14. However, Burlington officials reportedly told their Pittsboro counterparts that the test results had only arrived that day — more than a week later.

1,4-Dioxane is a “probable” carcinogen, according to federal health authorities. The chemical is used in industrial processing and as a solvent.

The source of the 1,4-Dioxane was likely one of Burlington’s industrial customers that discharges its wastewater into the city sewer system. Since traditional treatment methods don’t remove 1,4-Dioxane, the chemical passed through Burlington’s wastewater treatment plant and entered the Haw.

Burlington is 30 miles upstream of Pittsboro.

Sawyer said Pittsboro officials still don’t know if the 1,4-Dioxane has already passed by the town or has yet to arrive. “When a release of this type occurs, most of the substance flows downstream together,” Sawyer said. “The dilution and speed of travel of this bulked substance, or slug, is based on how fast and at what volume the river is flowing.”

Because Pittsboro’s contracted testing labs don’t operate on the weekends, its results won’t be back until Monday or Tuesday. Without the data, “we are unsure of what impact this release has, is having, or will have on our water system.”

Pittsboro utilities staff are drawing only the minimum amount of water from the Haw to “keep the water system functional,” Sawyer said.

The town is encouraging its water customers to conserve water by reducing or eliminating non-essential uses, such as landscape irrigation, washing vehicles and filling swimming pools.

In July, Burlington’s Southside wastewater treatment plant released 1,4-Dioxane into the Haw, albeit at lower levels — 160 ppb, or 457 times the EPA goal for rivers and streams. It took about a week for the chemical to reach Pittsboro, which at the time, detected levels in drinking water at 11.9 ppb.

In 2020, the Haw River Assembly, represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center, and the City of Burlington reached a memorandum of agreement to identify sources of 1,4-Dioxane and to reduce its discharge. Burlington has not publicly announced which of its industrial customers is responsible for the high levels of 1,4-Dioxane discharges.

Roughly 500 acres of farmland is slated for a large, mixed-used community in fast-growing Chatham County.

Once a family dairy farm, Reeves Farm was recently rezoned to allow up to 1,500 housing units on the west side of Pittsboro between U.S. 64 Business and Alston Chapel Road.

The property will retain its name as a nod to the past. But small-scale developers are now planning to bring a mix of “missing middle” housing to the site, including townhouses, duplexes and single-family homes, ranging from 500 square feet to 4,500 square feet. They will target people earning 80% to 120% of the area median income.

Roughly 7.5% of the units will be reserved for “affordable housing:” households with annual incomes at or below 80% the AMI.

“We want it be an inclusive,” said developer Edward Holmes Jr., who was born and raised in Pittsboro. “There will be a wide variety of price points.”

Another priority is integrating the development with Pittsboro’s downtown.

To the east is Chatham Park, a 7,068-acre development that’s expected to bring thousands of homes to the community in the coming years.

Holmes said a variety of restaurants, grocery stores, entertainment spots, and trails are being planned for the west side.

“We think this balances the growth around town,” he said. “It will be the gateway into Pittsboro from the west side.”

Holmes, with father-son business partners Buddy and Carter Keller, bought the farm — 488 acres — for $19.6 million last December.

They’re already active developers in the greater Triangle. For years, Holmes ran Chapel Hill-based Holmes Oil Inc. — the parent company of Cruizers convenience stores — until it was acquired in 2020 by South Carolina-based Refuel Operating Company.

Separately, Buddy and Carter Keller are managing members of Sanford-based Carolina Commercial Contractors. Founded in 1998, the company is behind a number of projects and businesses throughout the region, such as the Refuel at Mosaic at Chatham Park and the Green Beagle Lodge for pets in Pittsboro.

The developers initially bought the property with no entitlements in place, including sewer access.

But in July, the town of Pittsboro agreed to merge its water and wastewater facilities with Sanford, expanding the town’s current system, which is currently at capacity.

Holmes said they expect sewer lines to be installed in the next two years. With rezoning approval, they can now move forward with further site plans and expect to begin marketing lots in early 2026.

Once a vast expanse of undeveloped land, Chatham County’s rural landscape has quickly given way to construction in recent years.

Data from the U.S. Census showed its population jumped more than 20% over the past 10 years, to 77,889 residents, as residential growth from Chapel Hill and Cary spills into its two biggest towns, Pittsboro and Siler City.

That figure is expected to climb as new projects continue to fill the pipeline.

Among them: Vietnamese carmaker VinFast is building a multibillion-dollar production facility on a 2,150-acre “megasite” in Moncure that it says will employ up to 7,500 workers. In Siler City, another 19 miles west of Pittsboro, Wolfspeed, a Durham silicon chip manufacturer, is pouring $5 billion into the rural county and creating 1,800 jobs.

This story was originally published December 6, 2023, 6:00 AM.

Pittsboro, NC – Big Mikes BBQ in Pittsboro, recently had a soft opening on Saturday, January 20. The establishment saw a tremendous turnout, with almost all the food being sold out by 4 to 5 pm, leaving only a small amount of brisket remaining. I had a chance to sit down and have a conversation with owner, Mike Markham. He shared his reasons for choosing Pittsboro and the inspiration behind his venture.

Mike Markham, the culinary maestro behind Big Mike’s BBQ, chose Pittsboro as the home for his latest venture. Reflecting on the town’s growth and small-town charm, Markham drew parallels to his own upbringing in Concord, creating a sense of nostalgia and community. The decision to open in Pittsboro came not only from the appeal of an established town but also from a desire to grow alongside it.

One might argue that there’s no shortage of barbecue joints, but Big Mike sees an opportunity in Pittsboro’s culinary landscape. Acknowledging the presence of another barbecue spot up the road on 15-501, he embraces friendly competition, even suggesting a potential cook-off with neighboring establishments. We touched on the soft opening’s success, with a brisket quickly disappearing and plans for an expanded menu that caters to diverse tastes.

Markham shared insights into his culinary journey, spanning 12 years, from the inception of a food truck to the opening of Big Mikes BBQ in Pittsboro. Mike’s culinary journey traces back to his food truck days, where the love for barbecue and the joy of sharing it with others became the driving force. The decision to transition from a food truck to a restaurant was influenced by a desire to be a family man and create a space where people could enjoy not just the food but also the experience of coming together. Mike remarked: “I want to be a family man, spend time with my kids, and do something that I really love doing.”

Mike discussed some of his childhood memories associated with barbecue and his grandfather, who inspired him. There’s a focus on keeping the menu simple yet high quality. Mike mentioned the significance of tasting and perfecting the restaurant dishes.

Mike touched upon the challenges faced during the soft opening, with overwhelming demand leading to sold-out menus. Markham emphasizes the importance of sourcing local ingredients and maintaining a fresh approach to the menu. Special attention is given to signature dishes like burnt ends and brisket, with Markham sharing his secrets to achieving culinary perfection. The incorporation of smoked potato salad and unique offerings like secret menu items adds an element of surprise to the dining experience.

In a somewhat surprising twist, we delved into the art of pairing wine with barbecue. Markham breaks away from traditional norms by exploring wine pairings with barbecue. Mike shared his insights into the complex flavors of smoked meats and recommended wines that complement them.

There is a complexity of flavors when smoked meats are paired with different wines, making it a delightful experience for connoisseurs. The pairing of specific smoked meats with suitable wines can result in a harmonious combination that food enthusiasts will appreciate.

The discussion also included the use of tallow from brisket in a unique smoked potato salad, showcasing the dedication to freshness and quality ingredients. Mike also shared his personal experience and preference for smoking the tongue of the pig, describing its unique flavor and texture when prepared correctly.

The “secrets” behind great burnt ends and brisket are unveiled as Mike emphasizes the importance of the rub. Mike noted that “for me, it comes down to the rub. You cannot beat the rub.” Exploring the nuances of barbecue preferences, the restaurant will offer high-quality wings and a smoked potato salad that sets Big Mike’s BBQ apart.

Big Mike’s BBQ aims to become an integral part of the Pittsboro community, collaborating with local breweries and planning special events. Mike revealed the possibility of collaborating beers with Havoc Brewery, emphasizing the importance of supporting local businesses.

As we came to the end of our discussion, Mike emphasized the restaurant’s commitment to adapting and innovating its menu based on customer feedback. The mention of secret menu items, like Nick’s deviled eggs, adds an element of intrigue, inviting patrons to explore unique offerings that may not always be on the regular menu.

There’s a good chance that Mike Markham’s commitment to tasting and refining dishes, along with his hands-on approach to the culinary process, ensures a consistently high-quality dining experience for patrons of Big Mikes BBQ in Pittsboro.

Current plans are that Big Mikes BBQ in Pittsboro will be open for business on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

Watch and/or listen to my conversation with Big Mikes BBQ owner, Mike Markham on YouTube.

00:12 Big Mike’s BBQ opens in Pittsboro with a soft opening

02:05 Big Mike’s BBQ will have a different style with limited availability for certain BBQ items and a stable menu for sandwiches and fresh food.

05:09 Owner’s passion for barbecue and family traditions

06:45 Big Mike’s BBQ aims for a family-friendly atmosphere with limited focus on TVs.

09:50 Pairing wine with smoked meats

11:22 They use multiple grills and smokers with wood for cooking.

14:32 Secret to making great burnt ends and brisket

16:10 Big Mike’s BBQ fries potatoes in smoked brisket fat for a unique potato salad.

19:02 Big Mike’s BBQ aims for a fun, outdoor atmosphere with locally-sourced, high-quality ingredients.

20:20 Big Mike’s BBQ owner enjoys connecting with customers.

22:58 Big Mike’s BBQ is considering removing the redneck nachos from the restaurant menu.

24:22 The owner discusses the need for menu evolution and having a professional kitchen staff.

27:08 Big Mike’s BBQ expands distributor business, facing challenges

28:49 Adapting the menu to please customers and owner

PITTSBORO, N.C. —

Disney is building its second residential community in the United States, and it’s coming to life right here in North Carolina.

Storyliving by Disney announced plans for Asteria, a new residential community located in Pittsboro, which is in Chatham County. The Asteria community is in the beginning stages of planning with Walt Disney Imagineering and DMB Development.

Hearst Owned

The Asteria community will be part of the larger, award-winning Chatham Park. The community will come to life on 1,500 acres in the heart of Chatham County in the town of Pittsboro.

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“For nearly 15 years, Chatham Park has set the standard for innovative growth and thoughtful planning. We feel an extraordinary sense of responsibility to our residents and the broader community with this project and we’re incredibly fortunate to work with Disney, DMB Development and homebuilders to create something truly special,” Julian “Bubba” Rawl said.

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Residents will have access to metropolitan amenities with the charm of a small town. It will also offer neighborhood parks and miles of walking and biking trails.

Keep up with the latest news and weather by downloading the WXII app here.

Plans call for more than 4,000 residential units, including single-family and multi-family homes, with some home sites specifically designated for 55+ adults.

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Homes in the community will be built by select homebuilders, with sales anticipated to begin by 2027.

This will mark the second announced Storyliving by Disney community in the U.S. following the Cotino community, which is currently under development in Rancho Mirage, California.

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