Natural State News

LITTLE ROCK – After filing a lawsuit against a group of companies including 3M and DuPont, Attorney General Tim Griffin issued the following statement:

“On June 5, I’ve filed a lawsuit in Washington County against companies that manufactured and sold PFAS (perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances). PFAS are chemicals that resist stains, grease, oil, soil, water and heat. They are sometimes called ‘forever chemicals’ because they don’t break down in the environment or in our bodies.

“PFAS present significant threats to Arkansans and our natural resources. They are toxic at extremely low levels. The defendants bear ultimate responsibility for the presence of PFAS in our state, which have caused and will continue to cause injury to property owned and maintained by the state.

“3M, DuPont and many other manufacturers knew that their PFAS products were harmful to humans, yet they continued to manufacture and sell them without warning consumers of their dangers. In addition to being in many products that Arkansans use every day, there are a number of sites across the state where PFAS may have found its way into Arkansas’s waters and other natural resources. This includes the former Eaker Air Force Base in Blytheville, Little Rock Air Force Base and Ebbing Air National Guard Base at Fort Smith.

“Arkansas joins many states, cities and water providers that have sued these companies, targeting them for product liability, deceptive trade practices, public nuisance and negligence. We are seeking monetary damages and injunctive relief.”

PFAS has been around for decades and can be found in a wide array of products and industrial processes, including, but not limited to:

• food packaging and preparation materials (e.g., sandwich wrappers and other papers and paperboard for packaging); 
• household products; 
• stain and water repellant fabrics and carpets; 
• nonstick products;
• polishes, waxes and paints;
• cleaning products;
• surfactants used in Class B firefighting foams (AFFF);
• personal care products;
• in manufacturing and production, including in chrome plating, electronics manufacturing, textile manufacturing, oil recovery; 
• as a wetting agent and fume suppressant; and
• as a processing aid in fluoropolymer production and in textile coating applications.

To read the lawsuit, click here.

Original source can be found here.