Delaware Riverkeeper Network, Environment New Jersey, NJ Sierra Club and Clean Water Action Advocate to remove chemicals from water supply

New Jersey officials including the Department of Environmental Protection sued chemical company Solvay for pollutants – and ignoring a mandate to clean up contaminated drinking water – at the West Deport manufacturing facility along the Delaware River earlier this week.

The case stated that “forever chemicals” perfluorononanoic acid (“PFNA”), a type of polyfluoroalkyl substances (aka PFAS) have been detected in the local drinking water “higher than has been reported elsewhere in the world”.

Around 2010, Solvay replaced PFNA and PFAS with a ‘replacement chemical’ that is still being used today. However, the replacement chemical has been released into the environment and water, which could even be more toxic than the PFNA it was supposed to safely replace. Local environmental groups (including Delaware Riverkeeper Network, Environment New Jersey, NJ Sierra Club, and Clean Water Action) are calling on NJDEP to fully investigate the occurrence of the replacement compound and to fully research the toxicity of the compound, according. to a press release. 

The Delaware Riverkeeper Network exposed Solvay as the source of contamination of the water supplies for surrounding municipalities in 2013.

In addition to supporting the legal action, local advocacy groups will continue to advocate for Solvay to stop using the replacement chemical. They are also urging NJDEP to share information with New Jersey residents about the safety of their drinking water.

Photo by Chris Henry on Unsplash

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Julie Hancher is Editor-in-Chief of Green Philly, sharing her expertise of all things sustainable in the city of brotherly love. She enjoys long walks in the park with local beer and greening her travels, cooking & cat, Sir Floofus Drake. View all posts by Julie Hancher