3M has reached a landmark settlement agreement valued at up to $450 million with the State of New Jersey to resolve multiple lawsuits and directives related to PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) contamination. This includes claims associated with 3M’s historical operations at the Chambers Works site in Salem County and the Parlin site in Middlesex County, as well as the statewide PFAS directive and litigation related to PFAS in aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF).
The agreement, pending public comment and court approval, is the largest statewide PFAS settlement in New Jersey history and removes 3M from a scheduled 2025 trial in the Chambers Works case. Other named defendants, including DuPont, Chemours, and Corteva, remain in litigation.
3M’s settlement includes:
$275–$325 million in payments from 2026–2034, including:
$43.45 million for natural resource damages (NRD) at Chambers Works
$16.55 million for PFAS abatement projects, including drinking water treatment
$40 million for legal fees, costs, and punitive damages
An additional $125 million between 2035–2050 for broader PFAS abatement and NRD efforts statewide
Payment offsets may apply if local governments successfully claim overlapping damages
This agreement also commits 3M to continue PFAS investigation and remediation at its former New Jersey facilities. The settlement does not cover private individual lawsuits.
3M has previously announced its intent to discontinue all PFAS manufacturing by the end of 2025, having already ended production of certain PFAS compounds in 2000.
New Jersey officials emphasized that funds from the settlement will support remediation, drinking water improvements, and natural resource restoration across the state.
This settlement is separate from 3M’s nationwide public water system settlement announced in 2023, which is expected to provide $300–$500 million directly to New Jersey water systems.
What people are saying
In a recent quote, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said, “Corporate polluters must be held accountable when they contaminate our state’s water supply. For decades, 3M knew that their PFAS chemicals were forever contaminating the New Jersey environment. But they continued to pollute the environment and escape accountability. That ends now. New Jersey has some of the highest levels of PFAS in the country. That’s why New Jersey has been leading the national charge against corporate polluters who contaminate our drinking water and harm our state’s communities. Today’s settlement marks the latest chapter in our office’s efforts to combat PFAS contamination and protect access to clean water. We look forward to pursuing everyone else who had a role in contaminating New Jersey with PFAS, and we will see many of them at trial on Monday.”
Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Shawn M. LaTourette added, “The makers of PFAS forever chemicals knew how poisonous these substances were, yet they produced and thoughtlessly released them into New Jersey’s environment anyway. This historic settlement marks another step toward holding polluters accountable for dangerous PFAS contamination that has wrought havoc on our water supplies, injured our natural resources, and threatened the public health. The damages we recover from 3M will help fund New Jersey’s nation-leading PFAS abatement efforts, improve drinking water quality in Salem County and statewide, and restore injured natural resources. The Department of Environmental Protection and our Attorney General will continue to hold all PFAS polluters accountable when and wherever they leave behind a toxic mess. The people of New Jersey should never be forced to clean up after them.”