New Jersey officials announced a landmark settlement of up to $450 million with 3M Company to resolve the state’s lawsuits and address damage to the state’s water and other natural resources from dangerous chemicals.
New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Shawn M. LaTourette called the settlement the largest in the state’s history concerning chemicals known as PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) or “forever chemicals.”
The $450 million would be paid over 10 years and resolve 3M’s liability in the state’s lawsuits regarding the Chambers Works site (located in Pennsville and Carneys Point) and Parlin site (located in Sayreville), and the DEP’s statewide PFAS directive, all initiated in 2019. The settlement will also resolve the state’s claims against 3M in the statewide litigation regarding PFAS in the firefighting material known as aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF).
By settling, 3M will not stand trial in the Chambers Works case, currently scheduled for May 19, 2025, against DuPont, Chemours, and related defendants in U.S. District Court.
According to Platkin, this is one of the first statewide settlements that 3M has entered for PFAS liability in the country. The Chambers Works trial will be the first trial brought by a state for PFAS contamination against any defendant
The 3M settlement is subject to public comment and court approval.
“Corporate polluters must be held accountable when they contaminate our state’s water supply. For decades, 3M knew that their PFAS chemicals were forever contaminating the New Jersey environment. But they continued to pollute the environment and escape accountability. That ends now,” said Platkin.
Payment Schedule
The agreement begins with payments of $275 million to $325 million in the years 2026-2034. In the first year, 3M will pay $43,450,000 for natural resource damages for the Chambers Works site and $16,550,000 for PFAS abatement projects related to contamination from the site, which will include drinking water treatment. 3M will also pay $40 million to cover fees, costs and punitive damages. The settlement also includes payments for statewide natural resources damages and abatement of PFAS contamination.
The agreement continues in 2035-2050 with an additional $125 million in payments, primarily for statewide PFAS NRD and abatement. Payments in these years are subject to certain offsetting credits that 3M may receive if local governmental jurisdictions are successful in asserting additional claims.
Officials said that the funds paid by 3M will be used by DEP to protect public health, safety and the environment from impacts caused by PFAS contamination in New Jersey.
Including this 3M settlement, the state has now obtained commitments by corporations to pay up to approximately $840 million for contaminating the environment in New Jersey with forever chemicals.
This settlement with 3M is over and above funds already slated to be received by New Jersey under 3M’s $10-plus billion nationwide public water system settlement, announced in separate multi-district AFFF litigation in 2023. That settlement is anticipated to provide approximately $300 to $500 million directly to New Jersey public water systems, according to the state.
Liability Release
Under the terms of the settlement, 3M is released from liability stemming from its sale, marketing, distribution, use, or manufacture of PFAS in New Jersey. The company is required to continue investigating and remediating PFAS contamination at its former facilities in New Jersey where PFAS contamination has been identified. This settlement does not affect purely private PFAS lawsuits filed by individuals against 3M.
Minnesota-based 3M was one of the nation’s dominant producers of PFAS. In 2019. In March 2019, New Jersey filed separate lawsuits against 3M concerning two specific sites. One complaint concerned the Chambers Works site in Pennsville and Carneys Point in Salem County. The second complaint related to the Parlin Facility in Sayreville in Middlesex County.
Court Approves 3M Settlement Over ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Public Water Systems
In May 2019, the state sued 3M and other manufacturers for environmental damage, as well as violations of the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act, in connection with the manufacture, advertising, and sale of AFFF products that contain or break down into PFAS chemicals.
The remaining defendants in the May 19 trial are Delaware-based E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Co. (now known as EIDP, Inc.); The Chemours Co. and The Chemours Co. FC, LLC, both of which DuPont spun off in 2015; DuPont Specialty Products USA, LLC; Corteva Inc.; and DuPont de Nemours, Inc. These remaining defendants are not parties to the settlement and will proceed to trial.
In past cases, New Jersey reached a settlement with Solvay regarding PFAS at its site in West Deptford in 2023. Solvay has paid New Jersey more than $175 million for natural resource damages, remediation, investigation and cleanup. In addition, Solvay and DEP are in the process of cleaning up the West Deptford site itself and remediating water in and near the site. Solvay has guaranteed that it will maintain funding for that cleanup work in the amount of $214 million, according to the state.
3M has announced it will stop making forever chemicals and aim to discontinue their use in products by the end of 2025.
Underwriters Wary
As litigation and regulation increase around PFAS, insurance underwriting is tightening across lines. Insurance professionals who specialize in PFAS say insurers are mandating coverage exclusions and, in some cases, declining to write liability policies at all in PFAS-exposed industries.
Underwriters Wary of PFAS Amid ‘Superstorm’ of Litigation, Regulation
An Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule and Insurance Services Office changes are also shaping how underwriters view the risk. The EPA set a limit on how much PFAS can be in drinking water. ISO has published endorsements broadly excluding PFAS-related claims for insurers to use in CGL policies.
According to the EPA, PFAS are widely used, long-lasting chemicals, the components of which break down very slowly over time. PFAS can be found in drinking water, fire extinguishing foam, food, personal care products and more. Per the EPA, it can be found in the air and soil. Studies have shown that exposure to the chemicals may be linked to harmful effects in humans and animals.
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