Dive Brief:
- Savannah, Georgia, sued several manufacturers, 3M and DuPont de Nemours, as well as International Paper and carpet maker Mohawk Industries, for allegedly contaminating city water with PFAS, according to court documents filed last month.
- City officials accused the companies of improperly disposing of waste contaminated with forever chemicals and failing to warn residents of PFAS’ possible harm.
- The city is seeking monetary relief for punitive damages, attorney costs and past and future damages, as well as out-of-pocket expenses.
Dive Insight:
The lawsuit noted that the case originated from the manufacturing, supply, use and disposal of PFAS across numerous industries, including carpet, textile, paper and metal finishing and fabricating.
“The same chemical properties that make PFAS so valuable to these industries are also what makes PFAS dangerous,” Savannah city officials said in the court filings.
Savannah residents get their water from Abercorn Creek, which is distributed through a delta system from the Savannah River. The Savannah River Basin is located in eastern Georgia and western South Carolina and serves as a boundary between the two Southern states, according to environmental advocacy group Georgia Rivers.
The suit alleges that chemical manufacturers and users operating or have operated facilities in the Savannah metro area or South Carolina allegedly discharged PFAS-laden industrial wastewater into Abercorn Creek. The hazardous waste then allegedly entered wastewater treatment plants or landfills that are incapable of removing the forever chemicals, according to the court filings.
Savannah is the latest Georgia city to file a lawsuit against companies like 3M, Daikin America and The Chemours Co., which have been known to develop, produce and use forever chemicals in their manufacturing. Mohawk Industries has also been named and included in multiple lawsuits with the chemical titans for using PFAS in its manufacturing processes.
As a result of these lawsuits, Mohawk sued 3M, EIDP, Chemours and Daikin America in a Georgia state court in November 2024. The carpet maker accused the chemical giants of concealing the risks of PFAS when 3M began selling the toxic substances in the 1970s.
Georgia is home to many carpet manufacturers, including Mohawk, and the northwestern city of Dalton is called the “Carpet Capital of the World,” according to the Chattanooga Area Chamber.
The list of lawsuits against Mohawk and its subsidiaries in the Georgia area continues to grow. The costly issue led Georgia lawmakers to introduce in late January a bill that would protect companies that use or receive PFAS, but do not manufacture forever chemicals themselves. Dubbed the “PFAS Receiver Shield Act,” the legislation would provide forever chemical users and receivers immunity from hazardous substances-based lawsuits.
