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submitted 2 years ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

Chemical manufacturer 3M has agreed to pay at least $10.3 billion to settle lawsuits over contamination of many U.S. public drinking water systems with potentially harmful compounds known as PFAS. The deal was announced Thursday by the company based in St. Paul, Minnesota, and an attorney representing hundreds of public water systems. 3M is a leading maker of PFAS chemicals used widely in firefighting foams and many nonstick and grease-resistant consumer products. They're described as “forever chemicals” because they don’t degrade naturally in the environment. PFAS compounds been linked to a variety of health problems, including liver and immune-system damage and some cancers.

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[-] [email protected] 5 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

Good news. Sure the amount is too low, but it is good precedent to apply the same fine in Belgium and The Netherlands, where they did the same

[-] [email protected] 5 points 2 years ago

In the last 12 months, 3M's profits were $14.4B (source), so this fine represents 8.5 months of profits.

How large should the fine have been?

[-] [email protected] 8 points 2 years ago

Hmm, for as long as we're drinking PFAS-tainted water sounds fair.

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this post was submitted on 25 Jun 2023
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