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3M Knew for More Than 50 Years That Its Products Could Harm Humans, Australian Government Alleges in Court Documents
Manufacturing company 3M knew more than 50 years ago that its firefighting products — including components in Pfas “forever chemicals” — could be hazardous to the health of humans and animals and damage the environment, the federal government has claimed in court documents.
In filings as part of its $2bn lawsuit against the multinational company, commonwealth lawyers said products sold to Australia were known to stay present in water and soil, were persistent in the human body and in animals, and contributed to conditions including reduced kidney function, alterations in immune function, effects on fertility and puberty and lower birth weight in babies.
In May, the attorney general, Michelle Rowland, announced the federal government was suing 3M and its Australian subsidiary over Pfas chemical contamination at 28 defence bases, seeking damages of more than $2bn (US$1.4bn). The government alleges the use of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as Pfas, in firefighting foam has caused major environmental and economic harm, resulting in the largest legal claim brought to date by the Australian government.
Drive for Nuclear Power Boosts Uranium Industry — and Tribal Health Concerns in Southwest
On a hot April day, Malcolm Lehi maneuvered his Jeep Wrangler over a rough dirt road past junipers and sagebrush in search of Entrance Spring on land long connected to his tribe, the Ute Mountain Ute. The cool, mossy spring lies just across the highway from White Mesa Mill, the nation’s only remaining conventional uranium mill, which produces yellowcake for nuclear power fuel.
For decades, the mill has sparked debate over whether radioactive contamination threatens human health by getting into the water and the air. Concerns run especially deep in the White Mesa Ute Community, where Lehi and about 200 members of his tribe live some 5 miles south of the facility.
State regulators and the company that owns the mill contend that any pollution associated with it is contained. That’s little consolation to nearby tribal members, who — aware of uranium’s deadly legacy across the Colorado Plateau — have raised questions about the potential spread of toxic waste. Many won’t drink the local water, relying on bottled water instead.
PFAS in Baby Products
Caring for a new baby comes with plenty of decisions, and choosing safe everyday products shouldn’t have to add more stress. With growing concern about chemicals like PFAS, many parents may be wondering what’s actually in the products they use every day. Consumer Reports put several popular baby essentials to the test.
Consumer Reports tested 19 baby wipe products for 30 individual PFAS compounds, sometimes called “forever chemicals,” to see whether any reached levels of concern for babies. The results were reassuring. None of the wipes Consumer Reports tested had detectable PFAS. Consumer Reports’ Siobhan Adcock says that’s important because PFAS have been linked to health concerns including developmental problems and some cancers.
In a separate test of 10 baby lotions, Consumer Reports found no detectable indication of PFAS or lead. For both baby wipes and lotions, Consumer Reports recommends choosing fragrance-free options whenever possible and sticking with simpler formulas. Babies have more delicate skin than adults, and their skin is estimated to be 20 to 30 percent thinner, meaning it can absorb chemicals more easily.
Air Pollution Linked to Distinct Brain Changes in Regions Vulnerable to Alzheimer’s Disease
Exposure to common forms of outdoor air pollution may be linked to structural changes in brain regions that are especially vulnerable to Alzheimer’s disease, according to a new study led by researchers from the USC Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute (Stevens INI) at the Keck School of Medicine of USC.
The study, published in NeuroToxicology, examined brain scans and residential air pollution estimates from 1,484 adults without dementia or a history of stroke. In a group of older women, greater exposure to fine particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide was associated with a thinner cortex, the brain’s outer layer, in regions important for memory and commonly affected by Alzheimer’s disease.
The researchers found an unexpectedly different pattern among a separate group of younger men: Greater pollution exposure was associated with a thicker cortex in the same Alzheimer’s-vulnerable regions. That association weakened with age and reversed around age 65, although the later negative association was not statistically significant.
Quartz Countertop Workers Are Falling Prey To Lung Disease
U.S. News & World Report reported:
There’s a rapidly growing epidemic of lung disease among craftspeople working with quartz countertops, a new study says. More and more quartz workers are developing silicosis, an incurable and progressive lung disease caused by inhaling silica dust, researchers reported Aug. 12 in the New England Journal of Medicine Evidence.
Researchers identified 592 cases of silicosis among quartz countertop fabrication workers in California between January 2019 and June 2026. Of those workers, 65 underwent lung transplants and 31 died. “Hundreds of workers have been sickened making quartz countertops, a product we do not need, especially when a safer alternative is available,” senior researcher David Michaels said in a news release. He is a professor of environmental and occupational health at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
“Given the hundreds of diagnosed cases of silicosis in California, there are likely thousands of more cases across the country,” Michaels said. “Health care practitioners and public health departments should be on the lookout for cases and join the effort to stop this epidemic and save workers’ lives.”
Despite Potential Links to Cancer, Many Firefighters Are Still Wearing PFAS Gear
Paul Cotter spent decades living the typical firefighter routine. When the alarm sounded, he’d step into his turnout gear — the specialized boots, pants, topcoat and helmet that’s worn to protect first responders from extreme heat and moisture — and be on the truck within seconds. He looked at the uniform he wore day in and day out for years almost like a set of armor. “It’s almost bulletproof,” he said.
But after a cancer diagnosis, his wife, Diane, began to suspect the turnout gear he’d long been wearing may have played a role in his illness. Her instincts and advocacy led to groundbreaking research about the protective gear worn by firefighters — and a decade-plus fight to raise awareness about the toxic threads used to make it that contain chemicals linked to cancer.
“I became locked in full throttle because I could see what was being done,” she said.
But despite Cotter’s efforts, InvestigateTV found fire departments across the country are still using turnout gear that contains PFAS — with a nationwide survey showing confusion about well-established science, challenges in paying for new gear and a reluctance to talk about the issue at all – keeping firefighters consistently in clothing that could put them at risk.
