Q&A w/ Clean Cape Fear: Brief History of Regan & NCDEQ

In our next installment of Q & A with Clean Cape Fear we tackle this question sent in to us by a member of the community:

Q: The present leader of the EPA was the former head of NCDEQ, what was he doing the past 8-10 years?

Answer: NCDEQ knew about GenX in 2015. Then Gov. Pat McCrory (R) was in charge of the agency. No protective actions were taken under McCrory and a GOP supermajority at the general assembly forced deep budget cuts and staff reductions within NCDEQ. This is a common industry-friendly tactic--starve the regulators to protect polluters from monitoring and rule enforcement. 

Gov. Roy Cooper (D) took office in 2017. His transition team was never given a heads-up regarding GenX in the Cape Fear River. Michael S. Regan was confirmed as NCDEQ Secretary that spring. Two months later we publicly learned about GenX. Regan worked at the Environmental Defense Fund prior to leading NCDEQ. His response was slow going at first due to being in a new job at a new organization, inheriting deep staff and budget cuts, plagued with a lack of federal guidance and regulations on PFAS and specifically about GenX. 

Critical federal support was lacking from 2017 - 2020. States with well-funded environmental agencies and agreeable lawmakers were better able to manage their PFAS contamination. During this time, the chemical industry was allowed to heavily influence EPA decisions. Whistleblower reporting revealed chemical safety data were often falsified--including with PFAS. These two articles really showcase the severity of what was happening within the EPA:

Whistleblowers Expose Corruption in EPA Chemical Safety Office

EPA Whistleblowers Provide New Evidence of Ongoing Failure To Assess Dangerous Chemicals

From 2019 - 2020, Clean Cape Fear was often publicly critical of NCDEQ when we felt they missed opportunities to implement strategies we believed did not require additional staff or funding. By March 2021, Regan was confirmed as the first black Administrator of the EPA. Since then, the EPA has worked to create the first-ever PFAS drinking water standards, address environmental racism, and designate certain PFAS as hazardous substances.

Meanwhile, in NC our lawmakers refuse to aggressively address PFAS contamination. Secretary Biser is currently dealing with severe staffing challenges. 1 in 5 jobs at NCDEQ are vacant. It's important to note that federal and local employment levels are stable--this is a uniquely state-level problem. Experts say this is because lawmakers refuse to adequately compensate state employees. Another concern, more than a third of NCDEQ staff will be eligible for retirement in the next five years.

NC is a rich state, lawmakers regularly sit on $1 - $3 BILLION in budget surplus every year. We can afford to increase NCDEQ staff pay--however, these politicians refuse to allocate the necessary funds. Lawmakers are in the middle of finalizing our state budget for the next two years. Please call your representatives and demand they fully fund NCDEQ. Visit www.ncleg.gov to locate your lawmakers.