The U.S. Department of Justice reached a $450 million settlement with Chemours Co. over the company’s release of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), or “forever chemicals,” across facilities in West Virginia, North Carolina and New Jersey. The relatively small payout is a major win for the manufacturer, and while it includes a $22.5 million civil penalty, West Virginia is the only state that is a party to the deal.
Shareholder Steven Miano spoke with Law360 about the settlement, calling it a “very unusual approach,” since neither North Carolina nor New Jersey are parties despite both having manufacturing facilities covered by the consent decree.
“Normally, the states would be very much involved,” Steve said. “North Carolina has its own case against Chemours, as many states do. If they’re all worried that somehow this federal settlement might impact what they’re doing in their state court case, I would imagine they would challenge it.”
Steve also noted that the deal allows Chemours to continue manufacturing PFAS for what are described as critical commercial and military applications, and questioned whether the $90 million earmarked for mitigation would go far enough. “It’s hard to remediate, and it’s hard to imagine that $90 million is going to be enough for three states,” he said.
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