DC Lawsuit Adds to Outrage Over Toxic ‘Forever Chemicals’
WASHINGTON — The District of Columbia’s attorney general sued 25 chemical companies this week in a lawsuit that adds to a widening array of claims over the production and sale of materials that contain PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals.”
About 15,000 claimants are suing the chemical companies. Most of them are filed against the 3M Company, DuPont de Nemours, Inc., along with its spinoffs Chemours and Corteva, according to attorneys handling the cases.
Together, the companies have paid nearly $11.5 billion so far in damages for PFAS contamination.
District of Columbia Attorney General Brian Schwalb was the 19th attorney general to file a lawsuit against the chemical companies. Others are expected soon.
Before they’re resolved, legal experts are saying the payouts could eclipse the more than $200 billion in damages paid by tobacco companies in the 1990s.
PFAS, which stands for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are toxic chemicals that resist grease, oil, water and heat. They can take centuries to break down naturally.
They have been found in small quantities in tap water throughout the United States, including the District of Columbia.
A study published in 2015 in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, found PFAS in the blood of 97% of Americans tested.
“Having the offenders pay for the cost of the remediation and cleanup is just the beginning,” said attorney Gary J. Douglas, an attorney for the New York-based law firm Douglas & London, which is handling many of the cases.
He made the remark while announcing a $10.3 billion settlement with 3M last month for claims by cities and towns that said their drinking water was contaminated with PFAS.
The company agreed to pay out the money over 13 years. It also said it halted all manufacturing with PFAS chemicals.
Although 3M did not admit liability, a company statement said, “This agreement will benefit U.S.-based (public water suppliers) nationwide that provide drinking water to a vast majority of Americans.”
The lawsuit in the District of Columbia alleges more than negligence in overlooking the hazards of the chemicals.
“Compounding their illegal conduct, these companies for decades misled the public about the health and safety threats they knew their products posed,” a statement from the D.C. attorney general’s office says. “The district and its residents will be forced to deal with the adverse impacts of these ‘forever chemicals’ for years to come.”
Chemical companies started using PFAS in the 1940s. They are found in hundreds of products, such as stain- and water-resistant fabrics, carpeting, cleaning products, paints and fire-fighting foams. PFAS consist of about 3,500 man-made chemicals not found in nature.
The lawsuit filed this week says that, despite knowing that their products were linked to increased risk of cancer and birth defects, companies like 3M and DuPont falsely told consumers their PFAS-containing products were safe.
In the Washington area, they were used primarily by the military and at airports for fighting liquid-based fires from jet fuel.
Their resistance to breaking down meant that after being released, the chemicals would remain in soil before settling into subsurface groundwater. They then contaminate the food chain through plants, fish and wildlife, the D.C. lawsuit says.
“As a result of their conduct and the harms they have caused, defendants are liable for: creating a public nuisance (Count 1); designing defective products (Count 2); failing to warn about the dangers their products posed (Count 3); and negligently releasing and distributing their products in the marketplace (Count 4),” the lawsuit says.
The unspecified damages amount claimed in the lawsuit includes remediation costs for DC Water to remove PFAS from water supplies. It also seeks punitive damages.
The lawsuit is District of Columbia v. The 3M Company and others, filed in D.C. Superior Court.
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