Residents in northwest Georgia are one step closer to getting their day in court after a federal judge ruled that several major chemical companies must face trial over whether Summerville families can recover damages for higher water rates tied to PFAS cleanup.
What happened?
According to Law360, as relayed by All On Georgia, U.S. District Judge Thomas W. Thrash Jr. rejected summary judgment requests from Daikin America Inc., E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co., and 3M, allowing Summerville residents to keep pursuing claims tied to pollution in the Raccoon Creek watershed.
The central issue is whether those manufacturers contributed to contamination that prompted expensive remediation and, from there, higher water rates for local households.
Former Summerville councilman Earl Parris Jr. filed the lawsuit in February 2021, and the City of Summerville was later added as a plaintiff.
In September, plaintiffs also secured partial class certification for about 4,500 residents seeking damages over earlier increases in water costs.
The claims focus on releases from the Mount Vernon Mills denim plant in nearby Trion. Thrash found unresolved factual questions, including whether the companies knew their PFAS-containing products were going to the mill, how those products were used there, and whether sufficient disposal warnings were provided.
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PFAS are often called "forever chemicals" because they can remain in water, soil, and the human body for long periods.
Why does it matter?
The case asks whether the cost of cleaning up contamination can be shifted to the public through higher water rates. Summerville residents say they experienced that burden directly in the form of higher monthly bills tied to dealing with the contamination's effects.
The decision also addresses how broad a manufacturer's duty to warn may be when its chemicals have the potential to contaminate waterways.
Law360 reported that Thrash pointed to evidence that standard wastewater treatment does not remove PFAS and that contaminated wastewater and sludge can reach drinking water supplies.
What's being done?
The dispute is now headed toward trial, where a jury could decide whether residents are entitled to recover damages for those past rate increases.
Law360 also reported that Thrash rejected DuPont and Daikin's argument that selling through distributors shielded them from responsibility to the mill.
He found enough evidence for jurors to consider whether Daikin knew its products contained PFAS and whether the company departed from its own policy on customer recycling and disposal guidance.
The judge also said factual disputes remain over whether DuPont and 3M gave adequate warnings about the chemicals' dangers and proper disposal.
Daikin did win one partial ruling — Thrash granted partial summary judgment on claims involving some short-chain fluorotelomer products, finding that the record did not show those products materially contributed to the watershed's PFOA contamination.
Summerville's attorneys, Jay Friedman and Ethan Wright of Friedman, Dazzio & Zulanas, PC, told Law360 that the city has spent years trying to make those responsible for the pollution pay for cleanup and called the recent rulings "a step in that direction."
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