WINERY, BREWERY MAP: Nearly 40 local spots included. Special section, pages 11-13 April 17, 2024
Our 207th year | Vol. 207, No. 16 | www.Fauquier.com | $2.00 VIRGINIA PRESS ASSOCIATION: BEST SMALL NEWSPAPER IN VIRGINIA 2017-2022
‘Forever chemicals’ found in more Fauquier water systems
New local tests raise concerns other public waterworks, will have five years to address that problem. as federal rule takes effect By Hunter Savery Staff Writer
Last week, as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency finalized strict new standards for “forever chemicals” in public drinking water, Fauquier County unveiled alarming new test results. The new tests reveal that more than 15,000 Fauquier County residents use drinking water that would not meet the new national standards. Under the new EPA rules, Fauquier Water and Sanitation Authority, like
“We are finding elevated PFAS levels on all sides of the county,” Ben Shoemaker, executive director of the Fauquier Water and Sanitation Authority, told the Fauquier Times. PFAS chemicals, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are manmade and now found across the globe in raincoats, cosmetics, firefighting foam, food wrappers and more. The chemicals don’t break down naturally and can remain in soil indefinitely.
See FOREVER, page 2
TIMES STAFF PHOTO/HUNTER SAVERY
New testing by the Fauquier County Water and Sanitation Authority, headquarters seen here, suggests PFAS pollution may be widespread in Fauquier County.
Local wineries look to broaden appeal New strategies seek niches, focus on fun as sales decline By Dayna Smith
Contributing Writer
PHOTO BY DAYNA SMITH
Sisters-in-law, (left to right) Emily Duke, Kimberly Duke, Ashley Grammick and Jasmin Grammick (not pictured) in the tasting room of the cozy cabin-like winery Capstone Vineyards in Linden, Virginia on Jan. 27.
Chris Pearmund owns three wineries and has been in the business in Northern Virginia for more than 30 years. The big change he’s seen over the last decade isn’t a good one. Put simply, fewer people are drinking wine, which means it’s harder to make a winery profitable. “In the last 10 years, we were doing $80 to $90 per transaction, and now, we are doing $30 to $40,” he said. “For 20 years, we went up in gross revenue, and I think I am doing better than most.” It’s a national trend. Americans in their 20s and 30s are a tough market for wine sellers. Those under age 50 are drinking across categories — beer, hard ciders, seltzers – but definitely less wine. Only among those 65 and older has wine consumption risen. And that is posing an existential question for Virginia’s wine industry — how to appeal to millennials, and those younger, in a significantly changing market. See WINERIES, page 14
SPORTS: Fauquier’s Murphy hits 3 home runs, Kettle Run boys, girls soccer coverage. PAGES 8, 9, 16
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