AFFF Firefighting Foam / PFAS Litigation (Forever Chemicals)

Aqueous Film-Forming Foam (AFFF) has been the firefighting industry's primary weapon against fuel fires since the 1960s. Developed originally for military use by the U.S. Navy and 3M, AFFF was adopted by civilian fire departments, airports, oil refineries, and chemical plants worldwide. The foam creates a thin aqueous film that rapidly smothers hydrocarbon fuel fires — but its effectiveness comes at a devastating environmental and human health cost.

AFFF contains per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a family of thousands of synthetic chemicals known as 'forever chemicals' because their carbon-fluorine bonds are among the strongest in organic chemistry and do not break down in the environment. For decades, AFFF was used in routine firefighting training exercises, often in large quantities, saturating the ground and leaching into groundwater. The contamination is now detected near virtually every military base, airport, and fire training facility in the United States — and increasingly in municipal water supplies serving millions of Americans.

The AFFF MDL (No. 2873) is one of the largest and most complex litigations in the federal court system, encompassing both water utility claims (municipalities and water providers seeking cleanup costs) and personal injury claims (individuals alleging PFAS exposure caused cancer and other diseases). The litigation targets the manufacturers who produced PFAS chemicals and AFFF products while allegedly knowing about their environmental persistence and health risks.

Internal 3M documents produced during litigation reveal that the company's own scientists identified health concerns with PFAS as early as the 1970s and found elevated PFAS levels in workers' blood, but the company continued manufacturing without public disclosure. Similarly, DuPont internal documents — many obtained during the earlier C8 litigation in West Virginia — showed the company had known about PFOA health risks for decades.

PFAS chemicals are persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic. They have been detected in the blood of 98% of Americans tested. The most-studied PFAS compounds — PFOS (perfluorooctane sulfonic acid) and PFOA (perfluorooctanoic acid) — have half-lives of 3-5 years in human blood, meaning the body eliminates them extremely slowly.

The strongest epidemiological evidence comes from the C8 Science Panel, a group of independent scientists established as part of the earlier DuPont PFOA litigation in West Virginia, who studied approximately 70,000 people exposed to PFOA from a DuPont manufacturing plant. The panel found 'probable links' between PFOA exposure and six diseases: kidney cancer, testicular cancer, thyroid disease, ulcerative colitis, pregnancy-induced hypertension, and elevated cholesterol. This is one of the most extensive environmental health studies ever conducted.

In November 2023, IARC classified PFOA as a Group 1 carcinogen — the highest classification, meaning it 'definitely causes cancer' in humans. PFOS was classified as Group 2B ('possibly carcinogenic').

In April 2024, the EPA established the first-ever enforceable Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) for six PFAS chemicals in drinking water, setting limits of 4 parts per trillion for PFOS and PFOA — levels so low that they effectively require treatment at thousands of water systems nationwide. This regulatory action represents a dramatic shift in federal PFAS policy.

The exposure pathway for firefighters is particularly concerning: AFFF users were exposed through skin contact, inhalation of foam mist, and ingestion of contaminated water. Studies of firefighter populations have consistently shown elevated PFAS blood levels and increased cancer rates compared to the general population.

Eligible individuals may include:

• Military firefighters who used AFFF in training exercises or emergency response • Civilian airport firefighters exposed to AFFF • Municipal firefighters who used AFFF foam • Military personnel stationed at bases where AFFF was used (exposed through contaminated drinking water) • Airport workers at facilities where AFFF was deployed • Residents of communities near military bases, airports, or fire training facilities where PFAS contaminated the drinking water supply

To qualify, individuals generally must demonstrate PFAS exposure (through occupational use or contaminated water) and a diagnosis of a PFAS-associated condition, particularly kidney cancer, testicular cancer, thyroid disease, or ulcerative colitis.

This eligibility information is general and informational only. Whether you have a viable legal claim depends on the specific facts of your situation and the laws of your jurisdiction. Consult a licensed attorney.

The AFFF MDL has reached critical milestones on the water utility track while personal injury litigation continues.

Water utility settlements: In June 2023, 3M announced a landmark $10.3 billion settlement over 13 years to resolve claims by public water systems. DuPont and Chemours settled water utility claims for $1.185 billion. These settlements are among the largest environmental resolutions in history.

Personal injury claims: Over 8,000 individual personal injury cases remain active in the MDL. These claims — representing firefighters, military personnel, and community members alleging PFAS-caused cancer and other diseases — are on a separate litigation track. Bellwether trials for personal injury claims are in preparation. Tens of thousands of new personal injury claims have been filed in recent months, complicating any potential global settlement.

The potential for a comprehensive personal injury settlement is discussed but complicated by the continuing influx of new filings and the range of alleged injuries.

3M, the primary defendant, announced in December 2022 that it would exit PFAS manufacturing entirely by the end of 2025 — a decision that effectively acknowledged the unsustainability of continued PFAS production. The company settled water utility claims for $10.3 billion but continues to defend personal injury claims, arguing that its PFAS products were manufactured to government specifications (particularly for military AFFF contracts) and that the company cannot be held liable for products made to military standards.

DuPont/Chemours have argued that PFAS contamination resulted from lawful manufacturing activities conducted in compliance with applicable regulations at the time. The companies point to the evolving nature of scientific understanding about PFAS health risks.

All defendants are expected to challenge individual causation — arguing that even if PFAS exposure is associated with certain diseases at a population level, plaintiffs must prove that PFAS caused their specific cancer rather than other risk factors.

Water utility settlements represent some of the largest environmental resolutions in history: • 3M: $10.3 billion over 13 years for public water system contamination • DuPont/Chemours: $1.185 billion for water contamination

Personal injury settlements are on a separate track and have not yet been resolved globally. Individual personal injury settlement values will likely depend on bellwether trial outcomes, the specific PFAS-associated condition, and the strength of individual exposure evidence.

Total PFAS-related litigation costs for all manufacturers are projected to exceed $30 billion.

Past settlement amounts are not a guarantee of future results. Individual claim values vary significantly.