(Credit: Pixabay)A $64 million settlement against Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics, Honeywell and 3M regarding PFOA chemical contamination of a New York town’s water supply has been approved.
The ruling was made by US District Senior Judge Lawrence E. Kahn and the settlement will compensate current and former residents of Hoosick Falls. The lawsuit was first filed in 2016 and there is now a 30-day period for an appeal challenging the decision to be filed.
Saint-Gobain has operated the plant since the mid-1990s and before that it was operated by Allied Signal, which would become Honeywell. The facility is located near the town’s water plant and the pollution was detected in late 2015, according to the Albany Times Union.
DuPont was included in the lawsuit but did not agree to the settlement, according to the Times Union, and its case will head toward trial. DuPont and 3M are included in the lawsuit for their roles for processing or distributing PFOAs, according to the Times Union.
There are not expected to be any objections to the settlement and the companies originally agreed to the financial number in July 2021. The companies at that time said they would take a proactive approach to mitigating the PFOA pollution in Hoosick Falls, according to WAMC Northeast Public Radio.
This is the second PFOA settlement Saint-Gobain has been involved with since November 2021. The chemical company is paying $34.15 to residents in Bennington, Vermont, for pollution resulting from operations at a plant that closed in 2002.
Tackling such pollution has become a priority, and the EPA recently outlined a roadmap to address per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. The EPA’s goals include accelerating cleanup of the chemical pollution and holding polluters responsible, such as a $50 million agreement LyondellBasell Industries made to improve its facilities.
Of the $64 million New York settlement, about $23 million will go toward medical treatment and monitoring for impacted residents.
The Times Union reported nearly 2,500 claims in the case have been filed. Payments are expected to be divided among 1,800 property owners.
