Read the full article by Caleb Carter (KPLC)
“LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC) – A firefighting tool has been linked to cancer, and the chemicals inside it have been found in drinking water systems across the country.
Now, Westlake and Lake Charles are joining a class-action settlement over the foam.
How it started
This litigation started in 2018, when water systems and residents across the country sued manufacturers over water contaminated by polyfluoroalkyl substances, more commonly known as PFAS — a group of chemicals used to repel water, grease and heat. The cases were consolidated into a single federal court proceeding, based in the District of South Carolina, where they remain under the oversight of U.S. District Judge Richard M. Gergel.
‘That same strength and persistence that allows them to be waterproofing and resistant to chemicals and resistant to fire and heat, that also means that they last a very long time,’ said Dr. Kimberly Garrett, an environmental health scientist at the City University of New York’s Graduate School of Public Health. ‘And they can last a very long time in our environments. And so why they’re often called forever chemicals is because they’re very, very difficult to break down.'”…