Belgium-based Solvay to pay $393M to clean up and compensate for PFAS contamination in New Jersey
A Belgium-based chemical company will spend nearly $393 million under a settlement to clean up contamination from its so-called forever chemicals in New Jersey’s drinking water and soil and to compensate for the environmental damage they caused
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — A Belgium-based chemical company will spend nearly $393 million under a settlement announced Wednesday to clean up contamination from its so-called forever chemicals in New Jersey's drinking water and soil and to compensate for the environmental damage they caused.
Solvay Specialty Polymers USA, LLC reached a legal settlement with New Jersey's Attorney General's Office and Department of Environmental Protection on contamination at and near its West Deptford plant in southwestern New Jersey near Philadelphia.
The state had been suing Solvay and numerous other companies to force them to clean up contamination with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, collectively known as PFAS chemicals. The substances are commonly referred to as “forever chemicals” because they never break down and are difficult to remove from water and soil, said Shawn LaTourette, New Jersey's environmental protection commissioner.
These substances can harm fetuses and newborns, and have been associated with kidney and testicular cancer and other illnesses.
