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9-05-2025 12:29pm
Dedham-Westwood Water District Awarded More Than $4.9 Million from 3M Company PFAS Drinking Water Settlement
Darlene Cancell
Editor
Dedham, MA – The Dedham-Westwood Water District is pleased to announce it will receive over $4.9
million in settlement funds from 3M Company through a lawsuit filed in February 2023 against multiple
manufacturers of aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) for their involvement in the manufacture and sale
of per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (“PFAS”) that have contaminated groundwater supplies within
the District’s service area.
The first disbursement of $984,124 will be received this month. An additional $2.24 million will be
dispersed by the end of 2025. The remaining balance will be provided in smaller increments annually
over eight years, ending in 2033.
PFAS have been used for decades in AFFF, certain industrial processes, and in the production of
thousands of common household and commercial products that are heat-resistant, stain-resistant, long-
lasting, and water and oil-repellent.
The District tests for PFAS at both of its treatment plants monthly, and results have indicated that PFAS
levels in our sources currently comply with the maximum contaminant level set forth by the
Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (below 20 parts per trillion on a quarterly
basis).
“Design plans for PFAS treatment at the White Lodge Water Treatment Facility are shovel-ready, and
construction will begin shortly,” said Executive Director Blake Lukis. “Although these funds will
ultimately help with the costs associated with removing PFAS, they only cover a fraction of the overall
remediation.”
Construction costs for White Lodge are approximately $15.55 million. The District was fortunate enough
to secure a 20-year interest-free loan from the Massachusetts Clean Water Trust. Both the interest rate
and settlement funds will ultimately decrease the burden on ratepayers for access to safe and
affordable water.
The PFAS family of chemicals are entirely man-made, do not exist in nature, and have impacted surface
water and groundwater throughout the country, resulting in hundreds of lawsuits brought forward by
water providers, and mostly against the same defendants, in an ongoing Multidistrict Litigation
supervised by a federal judge in South Carolina.
“We are honored to have helped the Dedham-Westwood Water District in asserting its rights to ensure
the quality and availability of water resources to its ratepayers. It is the corporations whose products
are responsible for contaminating the water that should shoulder the clean-up costs,” said Ken Sansone,
senior partner at SL Environmental Law Group. “By the District acting early and filing a lawsuit against
3M Company, DuPont, and others well before the drinking water settlements were reached, the District
ultimately received a higher settlement payment than they would have if they had waited to act until
after the settlements were announced. This payout increase is known as a “litigation bump” and serves
to reward entities for their proactive approach.”
The District is being represented by SL Environmental Law Group, which exclusively focuses on water
contamination litigation on behalf of city and state governments, public and private water utilities, and
other well owners. SL Environmental Law Group has delivered over $1.2 billion from corporate polluters
to their clients.
For more information about PFAS, please visit: www.dwwd.org/PFAS
Thanks to Dedham-Westwood Water District for contributing this news to Westwood Minute.
