BC launches class-action lawsuit against makers of ‘forever chemicals’

VICTORIA — The British Columbia government says it has filed a class-action lawsuit against the makers of so-called “forever chemicals” involved in what it calls widespread contamination of drinking water systems.

Attorney General Niki Sharma says the province is the first Canadian jurisdiction to prosecute producers of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances.

BC has filed similar lawsuits in the past, targeting tobacco manufacturers in 1998 and opioid manufacturers in 2018 to recover health care costs associated with those substances.

Sharma says in a statement that the province is filing the lawsuit to “ensure that the companies that created the problem and profited from these chemicals pay their fair share.”

According to the US National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, the chemicals have been used in consumer goods ranging from non-stick cookware to cleaning products.

The institute says research shows exposure can lead to childhood obesity, weakened immune systems and certain cancers.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on June 21, 2024.

The Canadian Press