The DuPont/Chemours/Corteva deal will total $875 million over 25 years and create a remediation fund of up $1.2 billion. The companies will split the costs under the deal, which must still be approved by the courts. DuPont has said the settlement will resolve “all pending environmental and other claims” for “legacy” PFAS contamination at four sites (Chambers Works, Parlin, Pompton Lakes and Repauno), where the companies operated in the state.
New Jersey and the “PFAS problem”
New Jersey faces significant PFAS contamination issues, with high levels of these “forever chemicals” found in water systems across the state. The four sites covered by the settlement include:
- Chambers Works: Located in Deepwater, N.J., this site manufactured PFAS starting in the 1950s and has miles-long PFAS contamination plumes. The facility was a nearly 1,500-acre complex on the banks of the Delaware River.
- Parlin: An active chemical manufacturing plant since 1904, is a source of significant PFAS contamination in water, air, and soil.
- Pompton Lakes Works: Previously an explosives and blasting cap manufacturing site that contaminated the Wanaque River and surrounding areas with PFAS, lead, and mercury is now a Superfund Site.
- Repauno: An early DuPont research and explosives site caused extensive contamination in wetlands and the biota due to unlined landfills and tar pits.
New Jersey sued 3M, DuPont and the two other PFAS manufacturers in 2019, alleging that their operations poisoned the water. But once in the water, PFAS were everywhere, and they do not biodegrade.
Poisoning the water
PFAS, short for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a group of chemicals that have been in widespread industrial use for more than 80 years. They are formed by artificially connecting carbon and fluorine and were widely used because of their strength, stain resistance, grease protection, and water resistance. There are roughly 14,000 different PFAS compounds.
The strength of the carbon-fluorine bond makes them highly resistant to breakdown, hence the moniker “forever chemicals.” PFAS persist in the environment for decades or longer—in water, soil, and even living organisms. Their environmental and biological persistence means they can accumulate over time, raising long-term concerns for ecosystems and public health.
Poisoning agriculture, poisoning people
For years, biosolids (sewage sludge), abyproduct of wastewater treatment, using polluted water have been spread across farmland as fertilizer. The National Biosolids Data project now estimates that about 18 percent of all U.S. agricultural lands may be using biosolids as a fertilizer, even though they are often contaminated with PFAS. Once introduced into farmland, PFAS moves into crops and livestock and ultimately, from there into human beings – even people who had not directly consumed the contaminated water.
The NIH has concluded that PFAS contamination in everyday water sources is a risk factor for long-term health consequences. The list includes:
- type 2 diabetes in women;
- miscarriage;
- liver damage;
- thyroid cancer;
- reduced immune function;
- breast cancer;
- renal disease; and
- lower bone mineral density.
Now what?
The chemical companies that polluted water supplies and soil throughout New Jersey will have to pay $2 billion to address the environmental contamination they caused. Chemours, DuPont, and Corteva agreed to pay $875 million (over 25 years) to settle multiple lawsuits associated with “forever chemicals” leached from industrial sites across the state.
READ MORE PFAS HEALTH RISKS LEGAL NEWS
Similarly, the companies will have to create a remediation fund of up to $1.2 billion and a reserve of $475 million, in case any company goes out of business or files for bankruptcy. To date, this is the largest PFAS settlement secured by an individual state. This settlement will close lawsuits filed against these companies over their operations at the Pompton Lakes Works site and the Chambers Works facility. DuPont claims that the sum of the lawsuits closes the book on all four sites.
The settlement funds will be used to address PFAS in drinking water and soil across the state, although the details of when and how remain uncertain. Even more uncertain is the troublesome issue of how, exactly, this can be accomplished. The science of cleanup is in a developmental phase. Without a method in mind, there is simply no way to tell if the money will be enough.
The polluters are eager to declare the issue over, done and solved. But for New Jersey residents who are affected by widespread industrial PFAS contamination, the issue may persist for many years to come.
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