North Carolina Takes Decisive Action in Regulating PFAS in Wastewater – 2026 Update

Authors: A.J. Golding & Kennedy Schroeder

On September 11, 2024, the Water Quality Committee of North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s (NCDEQ) Environmental Management Commission (EMC) approved a motion to establish per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) monitoring for “every industrial and National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit,” including indirect discharges from significant industrial users (SIU) to publicly owned treatment works (POTW). On February 14, 2025, the NCDEQ held an online seminar session hosted by the North Carolina Manufacturers Alliance (NCMA) to present to current association members on upcoming PFAS monitoring and minimization rules aimed at manufacturing and industrial wastewater dischargers. The public comment period on the proposed PFAS monitoring and minimization rules (Rule) began on March 16, 2026, and will end June 15, 2026. Within 60 days of the Rule becoming effective, affected facilities will be notified that baseline PFAS characterization monitoring is required.

The purpose of the proposed Rule adoption is to:

• Monitor and characterize the presence of perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), and hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA or “Gen X”) in discharges from PFOS, PFOA, and Gen X industrial NPDES dischargers and their associated indirect dischargers (i.e., SIUs going to POTWs with pretreatment programs); and
• Require certain affected entities (subset of industrial direct dischargers and SIUs) to develop minimization plans that identify approaches to reduce PFOS, PFOA, and Gen X discharges directly or indirectly to surface waters.

PFAS Monitoring

For required monitoring under the proposed Rule, NCDEQ plans to utilize the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) Method 1633 version that is promulgated in 40 CFR Part 136, which is incorporated by reference including subsequent amendments and editions for PFAS compounds, and includes PFOS, PFOA, and GenX chemicals.

Initial PFOA, PFOS, and Gen X Monitoring

Within 60 days of the Rule becoming effective, affected facilities will be notified that baseline PFAS characterization monitoring is required. The following entities would be subject to sampling requirements:

• Industrial Direct Dischargers with individual NPDES permits (IDDs-IP)
• Publicly Owned Treatment Works with a local pretreatment program (POTWs-LPP)
• Significant Industrial Users (SIUs)

Facilities will be required to collect quarterly samples for one calendar year beginning within three months of receiving notice from the Director or Control Authority.

Sampling locations would include:

• Intake water and effluent stations for IDDs-IP
• Influent and effluent stations for POTWs-LPP
• Effluent stations for SIUs

The Rule also allows facilities to use representative historical PFAS sampling data, provided the data meets the proposed Rule’s sampling requirements and was collected within four and a half years prior to notification.

Ongoing PFOA, PFOS, and Gen X Monitoring

Facilities that detect PFOS, PFOA, or Gen X above the lowest reporting concentration (meaning, not a non-detect) in any quarterly effluent sample will be required to conduct ongoing monitoring. The Director or Control Authority will notify facilities of ongoing monitoring requirements within 120 days after receiving all baseline characterization monitoring data. Facilities that submit representative historical data may also be notified by the Director or Control Authority about conducting ongoing monitoring. To summarize:

• Ongoing monitoring samples shall be collected semiannually at each influent station/intake water station and effluent station starting within three months of notification from the Director or Control Authority.
• Monitoring would continue until four consecutive effluent samples are below the lowest reporting concentration (meaning, reported as non-detects) in four consecutive effluent samples for that effluent station.
• If multiple samples are collected during a monitoring period, the highest concentration would be used to determine if ongoing monitoring is required.

PFOA, PFOS, and Gen X Minimization Plans

Facilities required to conduct ongoing monitoring will also be notified that a minimization plan to reduce or eliminate PFOA, PFOS, and Gen X loading to surface waters is required. These plans will need to be submitted within 365 days of notification and will be reviewed by the Director or Control Authority.

Notification of whether the submitted minimization plan has been approved or is found to have any deficiencies will occur within 120 calendar days of submittal; any deficiencies are to be corrected and the minimization plan resubmitted for review and approval within 60 calendar days. The minimization plan is to be implemented within 120 calendar days of approval.

The Director or Control Authority will require annual reporting on the minimization plan that includes the following:

• A summary of the status of minimization plan implementation.
• Observed changes in PFAS concentrations in samples collected after the implementation of the minimization plan.

Every two years after approval of the minimization plan, facilities will provide a summarized status of implementation, proposed revisions to the minimization plan, and reductions in the amount of PFOA, PFOS, and Gen X discharged achieved during the implementation of the minimization plan to date. If the approved minimization plan reduction goals were not met, an updated minimization plan to seek additional reductions will need to be developed and submitted for review and approval.

Potential Financial Impacts

The estimated impact to the private sector is $120.4 million (M) with the projected cost per facility ranging from $0 to over $1.0M. The estimated costs for North Carolina local and state government is expected to be $9.1M. Costs for monitoring, reporting, and minimization plan development are expected to be greater for SIUs as compared to Industrial Direct Dischargers. These costs are due to monitoring, development of minimization plans, and implementation of the minimization plans, and vary depending on the scope and scale of the actions that will be necessary to minimize PFAS concentrations. The regulatory impact analysis can be found here.

How Can ALL4 Help?

ALL4 actively tracks NCDEQ water quality rulemaking and regulatory actions and we are ready to help your facility understand and comply with evolving PFAS requirements. With years of experience designing and implementing sampling and minimization plans for industrial facilities, ALL4 can guide you through the upcoming NCDEQ PFAS monitoring and minimization plan requirements. If you have questions or concerns, please contact Alex Ges at ages@all4inc.com or A.J. Golding at agolding@all4inc.com.