Federal court approved settlements that will pay New Jersey $2.5 billion for PFAS contamination
DuPont and related companies will pay $2 billion for environmental damage for "forever chemicals" at three industrial sites, including two in South Jersey. 3M agreed to pay up to $450 million.
A federal judge in Camden approved settlements with DuPont and 3M that will pay New Jersey up to $2.5 billion over the next quarter century to remediate damages from decades of manufacturing and use of PFAS chemicals in the state.
The order Friday by Renée Marie Bumb, chief U.S. district judge for New Jersey, ends a legal battle over so-called “forever chemicals” that started in 2019 and resulted in agreements last year that survived objections by counties, municipalities, and others over the settlement’s structure.
“This is truly a historic moment for New Jersey, which has experienced disproportionate and extensive pollution impacts from decades of PFAS manufacturing and use by DuPont and 3M,” Ed Potosnak, acting commissioner of the N.J. Department of Environmental Protection, said in a news release.
The DuPont portion of the settlement covers two South Jersey manufacturing sites: Chambers Works facility in Pennsville and Carney’s Point, Salem County, and Repauno Works in Greenwich Township, Gloucester County. Two additional DuPont locations covered by the settlement are in Middlesex and Passaic Counties.
3M did not manufacture per- and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals in New Jersey, but it sold a significant share of the firefighting foam that contained PFAS. It was used in military facilities, firefighter training academies, state government, and local fire departments across the state, according to state officials.
Neither DuPont nor 3M responded to emails requesting comment Saturday.
The approved agreements call for annual payments over 25 years. 3M will pay a total of $400 million to $450 million and DuPont and related companies will pay a total of $875 million into funds used to restore natural resources and abate damage to drinking water systems, according to Bumb.
The DuPont entities are responsible for additional remediation commitments worth $1.2 billion, Bumb said.
PFAS have been manufactured in the United States since the 1940s to make household, consumer, and industrial products. The World Health Organization in 2023 classified them as likely carcinogens. Health experts have associated them with high cholesterol, developmental issues in fetuses, and other health problems.
