Chemical giant E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. has agreed to a $27 million settlement with a proposed class of hundreds of residents in upstate New York who claim their drinking water was contaminated with toxic “forever chemicals.” The deal, announced just days before trial, marks the end of a long-running environmental saga centered around the village of Hoosick Falls, pushing total payouts to $92 million.
The announcement, issued Tuesday by plaintiff counsel Weitz & Luxenberg and Faraci Lange LLP, came after nearly nine years of legal combat involving multiple corporate defendants and an interim appeal to the Second Circuit. U.S. District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino acknowledged the agreement via text order and is awaiting a formal motion for final approval.
From Foam to Fallout: A Toxic Trail
The lawsuit claims that since the late 1960s, a local manufacturing facility used foam containing perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA)—a man-made, long-lasting chemical used in Teflon products—that seeped into air and groundwater. The contamination allegedly resulted in elevated PFOA levels in residents’ blood, raising fears of long-term health consequences.
“This case was a battle fought inch by inch,” said co-lead counsel Stephen Schwarz of Faraci Lange. “On the eve of trial, this resolution brings long-overdue relief to the residents of Hoosick Falls and Hoosick.”
