PFAS lawsuits endless. Continue to collect your salaries, just don't get caught in layoffs. Eventual bankruptcy for 3M but that will be 5-6 years out. This lawsuit covers anyone that bought carpet before 2020. Have an employment exit plan. 3M knew of the PFAS dangers for decades and continued to sell. Do you still think 3M is an honest and ethical company?
Aug 30 (Reuters) - 3M, Corteva, and Chemours were hit with a class action lawsuit on Friday accusing them of covering up the health risks of so-called "forever chemicals" used in carpets and rugs nationwide.
The lawsuit, filed in Minnesota federal court, seeks to represent a class of everyone in the United States who bought and installed carpets before 2020 in buildings they own. It alleges that per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, made by the defendants, were used in "virtually all" carpets up to that time for stain and water resistance.
"As the science and technology of PFAS, societal and regulatory expectations, and our expectations of ourselves have evolved, so has how we manage PFAS," 3M said in a statement. "3M will address PFAS litigation by defending itself in court or through negotiated resolutions, all as appropriate."
Corteva and Chemours, which are both spinoffs of DuPont (DD.N), opens new tab, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
PFAS are a family of thousands of chemicals used in consumer and commercial products like firefighting foams, nonstick pans and stain resistant fabrics. They have been linked to cancer and other health concerns and are often called forever chemicals because they do not easily break down in the human body or the environment.
Friday's lawsuit says that DuPont learned as early as the 1950s that PFAS in its Teflon non-stick products were toxic, but kept the knowledge from the public, and that the defendants continued working to cover up the risks. 3M for years secretly paid a toxicology professor to review articles submitted to academic journals and keep research about the dangers of PFAS from being published, it said.
The United States has recently tightened regulation of PFAS, unveiling new standards for contamination in drinking water and requiring some PFAS contamination to be cleaned up under the federal Superfund program for hazardous sites.
Thousands of lawsuits have been filed in recent years against manufacturers of PFAS and the companies that use the chemicals to create a diverse array of products.
DuPont, Corteva and Chemours last year agreed to pay a combined $1.19 billion to public water systems to resolve claims over PFAS contamination, and 3M agreed to pay $10.3 billion.
The case is Peterson et al v. 3M et al, U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota, No. 0:24-cv-03497.
https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/3m-corteva-chemours-hit-with-class-action-over-forever-chemicals-carpet-2024-08-30/