(This story is summarized from an “The Lawyer Who Became DuPont’s Worst Nightmare” by Nathaniel Rich from the New York Times”)
DuPont released a mass collection of records, all unsorted. In preparation for the trial, Bilott pored over them for months. As he read, he realized that he was dealing with a sinister chemical, the likes of which no one in the public knew but him.
PFOA was invented in the mid 1900s by 3M and was sold to various chemical manufacturing companies like DuPont. Even though 3M was well aware that it could pollute the environment in the 50s, they neglected proper disposal procedures and proceeded to dump tons of PFOA into the Ohio River. PFOA then made its way into the water sources of large populations in the region.
Additionally, there have been extensive internal studies on the effects of PFOA done by DuPont. Throughout the decades, DuPont researchers found that PFOA could contribute to abnormalities in animals. Work was also done with humans, as it was discovered that PFOA could easily circulate in the blood. DuPont tested pregnant employees with high PFOA blood concentrations and found birth defects. Despite all of this, DuPont did not release any information, demonstrating that they have prioritized profits over worker and public safety. DuPont was also glaringly aware that PFOA was being released into the environment. Water found in a local district was three times an internal safety limit.
If DuPont’s glaring neglect for safety and environmental well-being wasn’t demonstrative enough of their carelessness, what they did in the 90s will. A less toxic, safer alternative for PFOA was finally developed three decades ago. However, DuPont decided against doing so, since it was too much of a risk. This alternative did not see widespread usage until around 2010, well after the initial fallout from PFOA pollution ensued.