3M PFAS Settlement
For decades, The 3M Company (3M) manufactured per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and supplied them to other companies, including DuPont, which utilized the chemicals in its manufacturing operations at a number of locations in New Jersey, including its Chambers Works facility in Pennsville and Carneys Point and its Parlin facility in Sayreville. 3M also supplied PFAS-containing products directly to consumers throughout New Jersey. Contamination at the Chambers Works and Parlin sites, other industrial sites, and throughout the state from non-industrial sources led the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to take a number of actions in 2019 against 3M, DuPont, and other companies, including lawsuits (later consolidated) seeking remediation of and compensation for contamination at the Chambers Works and Parlin sites, a Statewide Directive ordering 3M, DuPont, and other companies to address the PFAS contamination they had caused throughout the state, and a lawsuit against 3M and other manufacturers of aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF), a PFAS-based firefighting tool that was used at many locations in New Jersey, and its component ingredients.
On May 12, 2025, DEP reached a proposed settlement with 3M that will supply up to $450 million to compensate the citizens of New Jersey for injuries to their natural resources, to fund projects to address PFAS contamination of drinking water supplies and other environmental media across the state, to reimburse DEP and other arms of the State for costs incurred to investigate and prosecute claims based on PFAS contamination, for consumer impacts, and for penalties and punitive damages. DEP will publish a formal notice of the proposed settlement in July.
“The makers of PFAS forever chemicals knew how poisonous these substances were, yet they produced and thoughtlessly released them into New Jersey’s environment anyway,” said DEP Commissioner Shawn M. LaTourette. “This historic settlement marks another step toward holding polluters accountable for dangerous PFAS contamination that has wrought havoc on our water supplies, injured our natural resources, and threatened the public health. The damages we recover from 3M will help fund New Jersey’s nation-leading PFAS abatement efforts, improve drinking water quality in Salem County and statewide, and restore injured natural resources.”
The 3M Settlement
The settlement reached by DEP is largest statewide PFAS settlement in state history. It outlines a payment schedule that extends over a period of 25 years, with total payments of up to $450 million. The key features of the payment schedule include:
- Payments of $275 million to $325 million in the years 2026-2034, including payments in the first year of $43.45 million for natural resource damages (NRD) at the Chambers Works site and $16.55 million for PFAS abatement projects related to contamination at and from that site.
- Additional payments in 2026-2034 for statewide NRD and abatement of statewide PFAS contamination.
- Payments of an additional $125 million in 2035-2050, primarily for statewide NRD and PFAS abatement.
- Payment in the first year of $40 million to cover legal and other costs and fees and punitive damages.
- Payment of between $50 million and $100 million in 2027-2029 to recognize to acknowledge and recognize New Jersey’s unique role as a national leader in PFAS abatement and Remediation efforts and specifically as the first state in the country to conduct statewide occurrence studies of PFAS in drinking water supplies, the first state in the country to establish a maximum contaminant level for any PFAS substance, and the first state in the country to enter into this type of comprehensive PFAS settlement.
The funds to be provided under the proposed settlement with 3M are over and above funds already slated to be received by New Jersey public water systems under 3M’s nationwide public water system settlement, announced in the AFFF litigation mentioned above in 2023. That settlement is anticipated to provide approximately $300 to $500 million directly to New Jersey public water systems.
Under the terms of the proposed settlement, 3M is released from liability stemming from its sale, marketing, distribution, use, or manufacture of PFAS in New Jersey. The company is required to continue investigating and remediating PFAS contamination at certain former facilities in New Jersey where PFAS contamination has been identified and at any site where it is responsible for contamination with hazardous substances other than PFAS.
Opportunity to Comment on the Proposed Settlement
DEP expects that a formal notice of the proposed settlement will be published in the New Jersey Register on July 21, 2025. The public will then have 60 days to submit comments on the proposed settlement. DEP will then consider all comments received before seeking judicial approval of the proposed settlement.