CANBERRA, May 28 (Xinhua) -- Australia's federal government has launched a landmark lawsuit against 3M and its local subsidiary, seeking 2 billion Australian dollars (about 1.4 billion U.S. dollars) in damages over contamination caused by 3M firefighting foam containing PFAS chemicals.
Attorney-General Michelle Rowland said the claim, the largest ever brought by the Commonwealth, relates to contamination at 28 defense sites where aqueous film-forming foams containing PFAS were used for decades, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported on Thursday.
The government alleges 3M, the manufacturer of the firefighting foam, withheld internal test results indicating significant environmental harm linked to the chemicals.
PFAS, known as "forever chemicals," persist in the environment and have been associated with health risks including cancer, high cholesterol and low birth weight.
Rowland said Australian defense and taxpayers have already borne more than 1 billion Australian dollars in costs to investigate, manage and remediate contamination, adding the government was seeking to recover those expenses, the ABC reported.
PFAS contamination in Australia has been concentrated around military bases, with the chemicals leaching into soil and groundwater. The substances were widely used from the 1970s before being phased out beginning in 2003, the media reported.
A recent Senate inquiry urged legal action against manufacturers and called for expanded health monitoring and community support for affected populations. ■
