Photo: DON MACKINNON/AFP/Getty Images
In a statement, the companies Chemours, DuPont de Nemours and Corteva announced that they have concluded “this agreement in principle to resolve all claims related to (…) drinking water contaminated with PFAS in public water distribution networks.”
In total, $1.185 million dollars will be paid, divided into $592 million from Chemours, $400 from DuPont de Nemours and $193 million from Corteva.
Perfluoroalkyls and polyfluoroalkyls are part of a family of synthetic chemical compounds known as PFASs, which contain more than 4,700 molecules suspected of having a dire health impact. They owe their nickname “eternal pollutants” to their very long life cycle.
On the other hand, according to Bloomberg, the 3M company would have signed the principles of an agreement for at least $10,000 million dollars to put an end to other lawsuits related to PFAS, undertaken by various US towns and cities. Asked about it, 3M did not immediately respond. The agreement must be approved by a judge.
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed new standards earlier this year to limit PFAS in drinking water, requiring utilities to monitor six of the chemicals and reduce their levels.
EPA Administrator Michael Regan said then that the new standards could prevent thousands of deaths and tens of thousands of illnesses related to PFAS.
“These toxic substances are so ubiquitous and long-lasting (…) that they have been found in food, soil and water, even in the most remote corners of our planet,” he said. These compounds are used, for example, in extinguishing foams used by firefighters, and they contaminate runoff water.