The State of Texas is suing companies who disingenuously marketed everyday household products containing toxic PFAs, AKA “forever chemicals,” as safe.
On Wednesday, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton criticized companies 3M and DuPont for failing to inform Texans about harmful chemicals in their Teflon, Stainmaster and Scotchgard surface treatment products.
“PFAS are known as ‘forever chemicals’ because they are persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic. Exposure in humans may be associated with diseases such as cancer and thyroid disease, and PFAS contamination accumulates in animals, plants, drinking water, and human blood over time,” a press release from Paxton’s office stated.
PFAs are also known as endocrine-disruptor chemicals that can interfere with hormone balance.
“For decades, 3M and DuPont knew about the dangers of these chemicals but continued to market their beneficial use in ordinary household products.”
The press release notes the filing claims the companies “marketed products containing harmful PFAS chemicals for over 70 years and were aware of the harmful effects of PFAS chemicals for over 50 years.”
“Despite this knowledge, Defendants continued to market PFAS products and chemicals in Texas and elsewhere as safe for consumer use, misrepresent their environmental and biological risks, and conceal risks of harm from the public,” the lawsuit states.
Paxton slammed the companies for knowing about PFAs dangers, yet continuing to advertise the products “as safe for household use around families and children.”
“Texas is taking action to penalize these companies and hold them accountable for deceiving Texans into buying consumer products without vital information,” Paxton stated.
The Texas attorney general’s war on forever chemicals comes as President-elect Donald Trump’s Health and Human Services Secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has previously called out the EPA for failing to revise its standards on PFAs and could take on the issue during the next Trump term.