Residents of Fairview worry their water is contaminated with arsenic. See why.
FAIRVIEW, N.C. -- A number of people in Fairview are complaining of contaminated wells, and getting help isn’t coming as easy as they would hope.
Mike McConnaughey’s most recent water quality test shows that his drinking water is tainted with double the amount of arsenic recommended by the Environmental Protection Agency for safe drinking.
“I go to the church and I have seen a lot of the people, the elderly, who have come up with these crazy diseases or cancers,” said McConnaughey. “In the back of my mind I wonder ‘What was the cause of it?’”
For McConnaughey, the only other choice is bottled water, and he keeps jugs of it on hand. Drinking out of the well his house is connected to just isn’t an option.
Union County Health Officials say their county has the highest number of contaminated wells in North Carolina. According to the EPA, too much arsenic over time can lead to cancers and possibly death.
This water could be tainted.
Carl Mullis used to be on well water, but has now hooked up to the public utility water after recovering from abdominal and skin cancer, though the water has not been proven to be the cause of his problems.
“Something had to cause it,” said Mullis, “I figure it had to come from the water of the crop spray.”
The residents of this town have lobbied their county and state leaders, hoping the governments would help provide clean drinking water, but to no avail.
Health officials said home owners are responsible for maintaining their own wells, and recommend purchasing filtration systems of paying for a utility hook-up.
Union County recommends people test their well water every other year. The Health Department normally performs those checks for $5.