3M Sued Over Groundwater Contamination On Long Island

A group of Long Island homeowners recently filed a lawsuit against 3M over allegations that its firefighting foam led to contamination of the nearby groundwater supply.

The plaintiffs, which reportedly include 15 residents of Westhampton and Quiogue, N.Y., argued that the foam long used on the tarmac of Francis J. Gabreski Airport contained the chemicals PFOS and PFOA.

The airport, which serves those middle-class neighborhoods as well as the affluent communities of the Hamptons, was classified as a Superfund site by New York state officials last year.

Bloomberg reports that the filing was the 10th such lawsuit filed over the foam — known as aqueous film-forming foam — since 2015.

PFOS remains in use today as a fire retardant component of many household products, while PFOA and related chemicals are used to make non-stick coatings. Both chemicals, however, are linked to cancer and other health problems.

Officials from Suffolk County, which was also named in the suit, told the publication that the contamination was confined to a small area, but attorneys for the plaintiffs said that they expected more than 250 people to eventually join the class-action lawsuit.

3M, which voluntarily began phasing out PFOS in 2002, disputed common perceptions about the chemical and said the company instructed its customers to properly use and dispose of firefighting foam.

“AFFF is a product that was used by the U.S. military and departments of defense around the world because it saves lives — which likely explains why this product remains in use approximately a decade after 3M exited the sales of it,” William A. Brewer III, an attorney for the Minnesota conglomerate, told Bloomberg.