The United States government has asserted its immunity to 27 lawsuits regarding the contamination of deadly PFAS chemicals, also known as “forever chemicals,” by the military. These lawsuits represent only a fraction of the thousands of cases from across the country. The Department of Justice argued that the government cannot be held liable for PFAS contamination and moved to dismiss the lawsuits, a move that the plaintiffs’ lawyers criticized as “misguided.”
Prior to the government’s involvement, PFAS were invented by DuPont in the 1940s and became widely used in various products. Despite their effectiveness, PFAS have been linked to serious health issues. In the 1960s, the Department of Defense collaborated with 3M to develop AFFF, a firefighting foam that contained harmful PFAS chemicals. This foam was widely used across military and civilian establishments, resulting in widespread contamination of water supplies and soil.
Today, there are hundreds of military sites across the U.S. with known or suspected PFAS contamination, posing a serious threat to human health. Efforts to clean up these sites have been slow, with the DOD expressing concerns about the impact of regulations on national security. The government is currently facing lawsuits seeking compensation for the contamination caused by the military’s use of AFFF.
Despite the ongoing legal proceedings, experts believe that the U.S. government is likely to enjoy immunity due to various loopholes in the law. The Pentagon has invoked the Superfund Act to clean up contaminated sites and argues that it should not be held liable for PFAS contamination. The scale of the litigation underscores the urgent need for funding to address PFAS cleanup, with potential costs estimated to be in the billions of dollars.
The legal battle over PFAS contamination reflects a broader environmental crisis that demands immediate attention and action from all stakeholders involved.
