Bucks County, District Attorney Sue Chemical Companies Over Contamination
Bucks County government and the district attorney have filed a lawsuit against several chemical manufacturers over water and soil contamination.
The joint lawsuit was filed Tuesday in the Bucks County Court of Common Pleas against a number of chemical companies who made and sold dangerous polyfluoroalkl chemical substances (PFAS) chemicals.
The press conference at the Bucks County Public Safety Training Center in Doylestown Township by the Bucks County Commissioners – two Democrats and one Republicans – and Bucks County District Attorney Matt Weintraub, a Republican, pointed to the bipartisan nature of the lawsuit that seeks to hold the companies accountable for contamination.
Weintraub said district attorneys in Pennsylvania are able to seeking additional recourse under state law and he will be doing that.
The lawsuit makes the allegation that PFAS chemicals were released into the ground and water supply over the years. The PFAs contamination at the Bucks County Public Safety Training Center is believed to have come from PFAS-containing aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) products used for firefighter training.
The county recently confirmed there was PFAS contamination in water and soil samples at the training center.
Bucks County Solicitor Joe Khan said there is evidence that shows the chemical companies knew the impacts of PFAS contamination in their products and were not forthcoming about the dangers.
The lawsuit states Bucks County officials believe the defendants knew by at least the early 1980s of the PFAS dangers, including how easily it could mix with water, resist natural degradation, and render drinking water unsafe.
The county is seeking fines, penalties, and wants the chemical companies to pay for for assessment, evaluation, removal, and treatment of the impacted areas. The county said the remediation costs for PFAS are a “significant expense.”
The claims are filed under the Pennsylvania’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law.
“While we will continue to investigate and study the health effects of these harmful chemicals, the time to hold these companies accountable is now. They knew that their firefighting foam products contained these toxic substances when they peddled them, and that they were dangerous even when used properly,” Bucks County Commissioners Chairperson Bob Harvie stated.
Credit: County of Bucks
“These companies interfered with our rights to public health, safety and peace, and the right to pure water and to the preservation of the natural environment,” said Weintraub. “As District Attorney, I am dedicated to protecting the county and its residents from the deceptive and unfair acts and practices of the manufacturers of PFAS in connection with their marketing and sale of products containing these undisclosed ‘forever chemicals’ to entities throughout the county.”
Khan noted the Pennsylvania Constitution guarantees a safe environment.
“This lawsuit is about more than the county’s substantial rights as a property owner,” Khan said.. “This is about enforcing the people’s constitutional right to pure water. These corporations need to pay for their outrageous misconduct and this lawsuit will help make sure that they do.”
Last October, PFAS contamination led to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and Pennsylvania Department of Health warned residents from eating fish caught along the Neshaminy Creek from Central Bucks County to the Delaware River in Bristol Township. The creek backs up to the county’s public safety training center.
State officials said they found “extremely high levels” of PFAS chemicals in the creek.
PFAS chemicals are believed to cause medical issues, including developmental problems for fetuses, skeletal problems, and types of cancers in adults, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Credit: Tom Sofield/LevittownNow.com
According to a state health department fact sheet, PFAS chemicals can remain in a person’s body for long periods of time.
There is growing attention on PFAS pollution and its known and unknown impacts. The compounds have been and are used in firefighting foam deployed at military bases, to make carpeting, and to produce numerous types of household goods.
PFAS pollution is a global problem.
Locally, high PFAS levels have been found in high levels in the area of the former Naval Air Warfare Center in Warminster Township and Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Willow Grove in Horsham Township, Montgomery County where firefighter chemicals are believed to have led to the contamination to the soil and water. It has cost millions to make the water systems safe and begin work to remediate the contamination.
The county lawsuit names the following companies as defendants: 3M Company, E.I. Dupont De Nemours and Company, The Chemours Company The Chemours Company FC, DuPont de Nemours Inc., Corteva Inc., Chemguard Inc., Tyco Fire Products, Kidde-Fenwal Inc., Kidde PLC Inc., Chubb Fire Ltd., UTC Fire and Security Americas Corporation, Carrier Global Corporation, Raytheon Technologies Corporation. National Foam Inc., Buckeye Fire Equipment Company, Arkema Inc., BASF Corporation, ChemDesign Products Inc., Clariant Corporation, Chemicals Incorporated, Nation Ford Chemical Company, AGC Inc., AGC Chemicals Americas Inc., Deepwater Chemicals Inc., Dynax Corporation, Archroma Management,Archroma U.S., and several John Doe defendants.
Law firms Baron and Budd P.C., Cossich Sumich Parsiola and Taylor LLC, and Dilworth Paxson LLP are assisting Bucks County and the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office in their case.
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