This story was originally published by the Chattanooga Times Free Press.
Dalton — the “carpet and flooring capital of the world” — is suing some of the city’s major manufacturers, alleging they and others dumped a group of chemicals known as PFAS into the wastewater system that will be costly to remove.
Through its municipal water utility, the city has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court against Shaw Industries Group Inc. and Aladdin Manufacturing Corp., owned by Mohawk Industries.
Several major producers of PFAS-containing products — including 3M Co., Daikin America Inc., EIDP Inc. and The Chemours Co. — are also defendants in the lawsuit.
For decades, companies like 3M sold products containing PFAS to carpet and flooring manufacturers in and around Dalton, who then used them to make carpets, flooring and textiles resistant to water and stains, the lawsuit alleges. PFAS in the industrial wastewater then ended up in treatment plants operated by Dalton Utilities and was then dispersed through its “land application system.”
Used for years because of their resistance to heat and stains, PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals,” have resilient chemical bonds that take a long time to break down naturally. They can build up in plants, animals and humans.
Scientific research indicates PFAS can cause developmental delays in children, increase the risk of prostate, kidney and testicular cancers and reduce the body’s ability to fight infections, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
Developed in 1986, Dalton Utilities’ land application system is a process by which treated water is recycled back into the environment, according to the organization’s website. Treated wastewater is sprayed over plants and soil, which helps nurture and optimize “the local soil and plant matrix.”
The utility said on its website that it is a defendant in multiple lawsuits regarding the operation of this system. While it’s “vigorously defending itself” in these complaints, Dalton Utilities said it would not allow hunting on its property this season out of an abundance of caution.
In April, the EPA released new drinking water regulations setting maximum levels for six types of PFAS. It also designated two forms of forever chemicals as hazardous substances. As a result, Dalton Utilities must make “significant and costly” changes to its treatment process, the lawsuit said.
The cleanup costs from PFAS contamination by the defendants is not yet known, the lawsuit said, but it is likely in the hundreds of millions of dollars.
The municipal utility said it filed the lawsuit last Tuesday to hold the companies accountable.
“Dalton Utilities further brings this action to ensure that it has the funds and resources necessary to remedy these harms and to continue to provide an essential public service — wastewater treatment — to the residents and businesses of Dalton,” the lawsuit said.
Spokespeople for Shaw Industries Group did not respond to an email or phone call on Friday. Efforts to reach Mohawk Industries and Aladdin Manufacturing by phone were unsuccessful.
In an email, Lindsey Mann, an attorney representing Dalton Utilities, said she cannot comment on the litigation, referring the Chattanooga Times Free Press to a statement on the utility’s website. The EPA’s new regulations require Dalton Utilities to undertake significant and costly measures to remediate its wastewater treatment facilities, the utility said.
“The financial burden of remediation and future maintenance of upgraded facilities should not be borne by Dalton Utilities,” the statement said. “Rather, the chemical and carpet manufacturers that profited from PFAS and/or knowingly disposed of PFAS-contaminated wastewater should bear the responsibility for the infrastructure and environmental damages they have inflicted.”
Credit: Matt Hamilton
Credit: Matt Hamilton
Attorney Ben Finley is part of a legal team testing water samples in the Dalton area. He said the city’s lawsuit is a “watershed moment.”
It comes about a month after Mohawk Industries filed a lawsuit against 3M, Daikin America Inc., EIDP Inc. and The Chemours Co., alleging the manufacturers concealed the risks of PFAS and made false assurances about their safety. Mohawk Industries said it’s already paid more than $100 million in settlements to fund the construction of water treatment facilities in affected communities.
“In our world, large Fortune 500 companies aren’t adverse to each other and don’t sue each other,” Finley said in a phone call. “And municipalities don’t typically bring large claims against corporations, particularly within their own county. ... It was the right thing to do by the city. It shows leadership.”
Credit: Chattanooga Times Free Press
Credit: Chattanooga Times Free Press
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