Dive Brief:
- DuPont, Chemours, Corteva and have reached a $455 million agreement with North Carolina, resolving per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances contamination claims made by the state, according to a joint press release Thursday.
- The settlement includes $380 million that will be allocated to 10 counties and municipalities, as well as the Lower Cape Fear Water and Sewer Authority, which are located near Chemours’ Fayetteville Works facility, Jeff Jackson, state attorney general, said during a press conference in Wilmington, North Carolina, on Thursday.
- The settlement also resolves separate state claims against the companies for contamination from aqueous film-forming foam. However, the agreement does not resolve PFAS claims residents made against Chemours nor does it absolve claims against other chemical companies that make PFAS, Jackson said.
Dive Insight:
The state will receive $75 million, with about $55 million going to the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s new Emerging Contaminant Mitigation Fund that helps mitigate the impacts of pollutants on local public water and wastewater systems and prevent exposure. The fund was part of the state’s $34.4 billion budget that Gov. Josh Stein signed into law July 7.
The settlement also establishes a $135 million reserve fund from DuPont and Corteva in case Chemours goes bankrupt and could no longer fulfill the 2019 state obligation. The reserve fund is part of a memorandum of understanding agreement Chemours, DuPont and Corteva reached in January 2021 regarding how to split financial liability for PFAS contamination lawsuit claims against the companies.
Chemours took over the Fayetteville Works site and Teflon production in 2015 when DuPont broke off Chemours and Corteva as their own separate entities.
Additionally, the settlement aligns with the North Carolina DEQ’s 2019 consent order that requires Chemours to address PFAS sources and contamination emitted by the Fayetteville Works facility, covering a 10-county region. The court order is a state effort to prevent further environmental impacts on state resources.
Requirements under the step order include Chemours installing a thermal oxidizer to eliminate 99.9% of the PFAS in air emissions, and to cease discharging processed wastewater, DEQ Secretary Reid Wilson said at the press conference.
The chemical titan also had to build a deep barrier wall in the ground to prevent groundwater from seeping into the Cape Fear River, as well as test private wells that serve as a water source for residents. Furthermore, Chemours agreed to pay for alternative water supplies if tests concluded that the wells were contaminated.
“Holding Chemours’ feet to the fire” has paid off since the consent order was enacted, Reid said. Emissions of hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid, a PFAS used in Chemours’ fluoropolymer manufacturing process, are down about 99%. GenX is Chemours’ brand name for the processing aid technology used to make fluoropolymers without the use of perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA, according to the U.S. EPA.
Processed water discharges no longer surface in the water, over 25,000 wells have been tested in 10 counties, and nearly 10,000 homes are eligible for water supplies, Reid added. Chemours’ cost compliance equaled about $1.2 billion.
The deal is the state’s largest, which Reid said was an “excellent settlement” compared to Chemours’ $450 million agreement to resolve PFAS claims brought by the U.S. Department of Justice, EPA and the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection.
The settlement includes requiring Chemours to spend only $90 million over 15 years to mitigate toxic substance discharges across North Carolina, New Jersey and West Virginia. Dividing the $90 million between three states means North Carolina will only get $2 million a year over the 15-year period, Reid said.
Stein, Reid and Jackson also sent joint comments urging the federal court to reject the settlement, due to North Carolina officials not being consulted. The federal settlement also does not require Chemours to reduce pollution in the state nor adds relief for residents affected by contaminated wells, Reid said.
“Not a penny of that is actually guaranteed for North Carolina, so it's a deal that's terrible for people in North Carolina,” Reid said.
The settlement also includes no admission of liability by the companies, according to the agreement.
“Nothing about the Agreement shall constitute any admission by the Companies of fault, responsibility, wrong doing or liability on the part of the Released parties, nor does it constitute evidence of liability or or wrongful conduct on the part of any Party,” according to the agrement.
Chemours’ resolution aligns with its Pathway to Thrive business strategy, which includes resolving legacy litigation, creating awareness and informing the public on regulations and policies of its chemistries, according to the company’s press release.
