Black residents in Brunswick, NC, ask for better access to clean water

Brunswick County residents are teaming up with an international human rights organization to advocate for access to clean water in historically Black neighborhoods.

Several residents from historically Black neighborhoods of Brunswick County attended the board of commissioners meeting on Monday, March 17, to express concern about lack of access to clean water and request action from the county.

The movement was headed by Carl Parker, president of Brunswick’s NAACP chapter. Parker spoke on behalf of the organization and said the county has a responsibility to provide its residents with clean water.

“We cannot use [well water] for all situations,” Parker said. “We have babies just like everybody else has babies. We don’t want them to be washed in rusty, contaminated water.”

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EarthRights International campaigns officer Audrey Schreiber requested that the county extend water lines to neighborhoods that currently rely on well water or otherwise cannot afford hook up fees to connect to county water. Schreiber said that the issue disproportionately affects the county’s Black residents.

“Some report that their well water smells foul, is polluted with sediment and discolors their clothing and hair,” Schreiber said. “Residents share that they often have to choose between buying bottled water or medication.”

Bolivia resident Sabrina Beal said that she buys bottled water every week for all her daily needs. Beal said that she has seen her water quality decline over the past five decades, attributing it to rapid residential development. She said that she is one of the many residents living with “forever chemicals” known as PFAS in her water supply.

“We are told that they are not at dangerous levels despite there being no definitive research or data to prove that this is not harmful to our bodies,” Beal said. “God only knows what the insides of some people look like from using it.”

Beyond water used for drinking and other routine household activities, Schreiber said that limited access to county water is a fire hazard that has already caused significant damage.

“In the last 10 years, there have been over 600 structural fires that are not within 1,000 feet of a fire hydrant,” Schreiber said. “Many residents do not live near a fire hydrant even though they are required to pay fire fees as part of their property taxes.”

EarthRights International has been working alongside Brunswick residents since 2023 in the effort to address water infrastructure issues in the county. Now, the nonprofit is urging the county to apply for water infrastructure grants through the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality.

Commissioners did not respond to the concerns presented during the public comment portion of the meeting. Board members are not required to answer questions during these periods and are expected to refrain from engaging in dialogue beyond clarifying a speaker's position, according to the county's public comment policy.

Brunswick County's public information officer Meagan Kascsak said that county staff has applied for grants in areas of concern following meetings with Parker. The areas include Albright and Brown roads, which would be part of the Bolivia Water Main Project. The town has also applied for a grant to fund utilities improvements at Bellamy and Gore roads under the Longwood Road Water Project application.

The county received notice this week that those two grants have been defunded in the proposed 2025 federal budget. The Ferguson Group, who assists the county in identifying grant opportunities, told the county that it would be best to only try to fund one or two projects in the upcoming fiscal year due to the significant attention on federal spending. The county plans to re-apply for a grant for the Longwood Road Water Project since it had received a favorable ranking and had been previously awarded.

Kascsak said that Brunswick's status as a tier three county under the N.C. Department of Commerce's County Distress Rankings is one of the major roadblocks the county facing when seeking grant funding.

"Brunswick is considered one of the 20 least economically distressed counties in the state," Kascsak said. "Because of this, Brunswick County is already at a disadvantage before our application is even reviewed."

In February, Gov. Josh Stein announced that the department would provide $265 million in loans and grants for water projects in 45 counties across the state. New Hanover County will receive nearly $3 million to install water lines and connect residential units. A Cape Fear Public Utility Authority project will receive $35 million in funding. Brunswick is not on the list of counties to receive funding from the department.

Brunswick’s Northwest Water Treatment Plant expansion and upgrade is slated to address clean drinking water and rapid growth by late spring. The $167.3 million project was roughly 85% complete when the county provided an update in January.

The project received a $74 million loan from the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act in 2018 following the discovery of PFAS chemicals in drinking water across the Cape Fear region in 2017. Brunswick is one of the affected counties suing chemical manufacturers DuPont and Chemours for monetary damages incurred by the county.

Still, a service area map shows that large portions of Brunswick will not receive water from the county.

Daniel Sheehan covers New Hanover and Brunswick counties for the StarNews. Reach him at [email protected].