US – American multinational conglomerate, 3M and 13 other chemical companies are being sued by Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul for contaminating multiple sources of drinking water.
Raoul is suing 3M and several other large chemical companies that have in their past had some role in making a class of chemicals used in non-stick pans, clothing, furniture, water and stain repellents, food packaging and thousands of other products.
Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly known as PFAS, are tied to some types of cancer, liver damage and other health conditions. Minnesota-based 3M has promised to stop making PFAS products by the end of 2025.
In his lawsuit, filed on 31st January in Circuit Court of Cook County, Raoul seeks to recover environmental damage as well as money from the companies “necessary for Illinois to continue identifying, monitoring” PFAS contamination.
The lawsuit alleges that PFAS manufacturers actively promoted them as safe to manufacture and employ, even though they knew that the toxic family of chemicals carried significant health and environmental risks.
The state’s environmental officials identified more than 100 drinking water systems around Illinois, including Chicago’s suburbs, that have measurable levels of PFAS.
In addition, another recent study found that fish from the Great Lakes and other freshwater sources tested for high levels of the chemicals.
“By manufacturing and sending into Illinois these chemicals while misleading the public about their toxic properties, defendants have caused widespread contamination and injuries to Illinois’ natural resources and have caused releases of PFAS into the environment at concentrations that exceed applicable Illinois health advisories,” Raoul’s lawsuit said.
Last year, Raoul filed another lawsuit against 3M, specifically related to contamination around a company plant north of the Quad Cities.
A 3M spokesman said in a statement the company “acted responsibly in connection with its manufacturing operations and products containing PFAS and will vigorously defend its record of environmental stewardship.”
Others named in the suit include DuPont, BASF, Bayer, Daikin, Solvay, Dyneon, Arkema, AGC Chemicals Americas, among others.
“It’s extremely helpful to have state attorneys general to hold these polluters accountable for costs,” said Erik Olson, a senior strategic director for health with the environmental organization Natural Resources Defense Council.
Drinking water systems will spend millions, “if not billions,” of dollars to remove PFAS, Olson said.
The chemicals get their forever nickname because they are very difficult to destroy, won’t break down in the environment and are unlikely to pass through the human body. U.S. health officials estimate 97% of Americans have PFAS in their blood.
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