Landmark settlement filed to clean up forever chemicals
In one of the most comprehensive settlements of its kind in the nation, a Georgia city in the world’s largest carpet manufacturing region has agreed to take meaningful steps to protect its water from years of widespread forever chemical pollution.
“This has always been about clean water,” says Jesse Demonbreun-Chapman, executive director and riverkeeper at Coosa River Basin Initiative. “Healthy rivers and clean drinking water aren’t a luxury — they are a necessity.”
Healthy rivers and clean drinking water aren’t a luxury — they are a necessity.
Jesse Demonbreun-Chapman, Coosa River Basin Initiative
Calhoun, a city nestled in northwest Georgia, sits at the intersection of two major rivers that form the Coosa River, which flows south to Alabama where it provides drinking water to thousands of residents, and serves as a habitat for a thriving fishing and recreational community at Weiss Lake. The city operates a publicly owned wastewater treatment plant that receives and treats industrial wastewater from some of the world’s largest carpet producers and finishers – industries widely known to use dangerous PFAS, or forever chemicals.
Our partners at Coosa River Basin Initiative have agreed to resolve our federal lawsuit against the city for allowing this PFAS to be discharged into the public wastewater plant, which has led to PFAS in residents’ drinking water for years.
“Families should not be exposed to toxic industrial chemicals in their drinking water because of industry failures to adequately monitor for and treat their wastewater, and public wastewater systems should not sit idly by and allow that to continue,” says Chris Bowers, a senior attorney in SELC’s Atlanta Office. “Thanks to our legal action, Calhoun is rolling up its sleeves and getting to work on the problem. Others must follow.”
The proposed settlement requires an overhaul of the city’s wastewater “pretreatment program” to ensure it regulates PFAS, an extensive residential drinking water well investigation, and a remedy for impacted residents, among other fixes. If approved by the court, the city will be directed to upgrade its drinking water plants to effectively treat PFAS in the public water supply and seek recovery from the chemical and carpet industry, among other remedies including tackling contamination from one of the largest sludge fields threatening the public drinking water supply.
This settlement shows that if wastewater plants can effectively control PFAS pollution in one of the most impacted communities in Georgia, they can do the same everywhere.
Jamie Whitlock, Senior Attorney
Unrestricted discharges of PFAS isn’t just a bad idea, it’s unlawful under the Clean Water Act.
SELC continues to show the effectiveness of enforcing the existing law, a model we’ve also seen drive action on the national level. The Environmental Protection Agency is now asking states to follow our lead and use the laws already on the books to rein in toxic PFAS contamination before it causes further harm.
“This case marks a turning point for Georgia on PFAS wastewater treatment and regulation, showing how our environmental laws are supposed to work, and what can happen when they aren’t properly enforced,” says Jamie Whitlock, a senior attorney in SELC’s Asheville office. “This settlement shows that if wastewater plants can effectively control PFAS pollution in one of the most impacted communities in Georgia, they can do the same everywhere.”