Read the full article by Katie Kausch (NJ Advance Media)

“A lawsuit filed against a New Jersey water company over too-high levels of ‘forever chemicals’ has been granted class action status, a judge in Middlesex County ruled.

Middlesex Water customers in six towns— South Plainfield, Clark, Edison, Metuchen, Woodbridge and Carteret — were told to buy bottled water after Middlesex Water reported levels of Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOAs) that exceeded safety limits from its South Plainfield treatment center. Customers with specific health needs were also told to consult with their doctors.

The suit, filed in Superior Court in Middlesex County, seeks reimbursement for those costs.

The lawsuit also says Middlesex Water did not do enough to alert its customers. Notices were only sent to the person named on the water bills, meaning tenants in apartments would not have gotten the notice, the suit says.

Anyone who was sent a notice about the contamination or who was not sent a notice but was in a home serviced by Middlesex Water, is eligible to join the suit, the ruling, issued by Judge Michael Toto, says. Those who have a specific health concern or an infant are eligible to join a subclass, the order said.

About 61,000 homes get water from Middlesex Water.

‘This class action brings a huge measure of justice to the thousands of consumers affected by this tainted water,’ Michael Galpern, one of the lawyers who filed the suit, said in a statement. ‘The Court wisely set up several subclasses of consumers, so all affected customers, whether they simply ingested the tainted water, or have developed health problems as a result, will have a voice in this case.'”…