State, Solvay agree to settle PFAS suit: What happens next?

WEST DEPTFORD - A proposed settlement of a state lawsuit over a company’s “forever-chemical” pollution in South Jersey is expected to result in clean-up efforts and money for tainted water systems.The agreement also calls for Solvay Specialty Polymers USA LLC to pay for damages to natural resources near its West Deptford facility.

And the public will be able to offer its opinion before a judge rules on the proposal, which calls on Solvay to commit almost $393 million.

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Attorney General Matthew Platkin on Wednesday called the settlement “a historic step that requires Solvay to finally take meaningful responsibility for PFAS and other contamination at their site.”

A Solvay executive described it as “the latest step in our journey to responsibly manage fluorosurfactant use at our West Deptford facility.”

Environmentalists warn against assumptions

But representatives of environmental groups said it was too soon to assess the likely impact.

In a press release, they warned of “devils in the unknown details.”

“No one should be rushing to make pronouncements,” said a statement from Delaware Riverkeeper Network, Clean Water Action and Environment New Jersey.

“It’ll take days if not weeks to be able to make authoritative statements,” the statement said.

“Forcing Solvay to pay up and clean up is long overdue,” said Amy Goldsmith of Clean Water Action. “We look forward to the upcoming public process − a time for the community and groups like ours to weigh in on the terms of the settlement.”

PFAS substances are manmade chemicals used to make products that repel water and oil. They can also be used to contain fuel fires, although Solvay noted that foam is not one of its products.

The chemicals, used at Solvay's Leonard Lane plant for more than 30 years, are “highly resistant to environmental degradation and known to accumulate in the human body,” said a statement from the Attorney General’s Office and the Department of Environmental Protection.

“PFAS are associated with serious adverse health effects such as decreased vaccine response,” it added.

What does Solvay settlement call for?

Among other measures, Solvay is expected to devote about $100 million to PFAS impacts in public water systems, “even where the source of the PFAS contamination is disputed,” the statement aid.

Affected public wells are in Bellmawr, Brooklawn, Greenwich, East Greenwich, Gloucester City, Paulsboro, Westville and Woodbury.

Affected private wells are in West Deptford, Logan, Deptford, Greenwich, and Swedesboro.

Solvay also is expected to “investigate and address” PFAS impacts to water supplies in the region.

It would have to post $214 million to guarantee DEP could complete a clean-up if Solvay can’t do so, the statement said.

The company also would earmark $75 million to compensate for natural resource damages.

Other funds from the firm would cover the DEP’s past costs due to Solvay’s operations, and would finance scientific research support, according to the statement.

The state ordered Solvay and other companies in 2019 to address the damage caused by PFAS. It sued the Gloucester County firm one year later after Solvay did not fully comply with DEP orders.

Solvay says it's already taken measures

The Solvay executive, Mike Finelli, said the company stopped fluorosurfactants in July 2021 and has been "investigating and remediating PFAS in the environment near our West Deptford facility since 2013."

Among other actions, Solvay is working to install a drinking-water treatment system on a municipal well in West Deptford, said Finelli, the firm’s Chief North America Officer.

He also asserted “other significant sources of PFAS contamination in the region,” such as fire-fighting foam, likely came from other companies.

For more information, DEP has created a website with the proposed settlement agreement, FAQs, a list of affected wells, and other information.

Details will be posted on that website on how the public can submit comments. The public will have 60 days to act after the proposed settlement appears in the Aug. 7 edition of the New Jersey Register.

Jim Walsh is a senior reporter with the Courier-Post, Burlington County Times and The Daily Journal. Email him at jwalsh@cpsj.com.

This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Solvay expected to clean up 'forever chemicals' under settlement