Dupont, EPA Agree to Settle PFOA case

DuPont and EPA have agreed to settle allegations that the company failed to report for more than 20 years that a fluorochemical was found in the umbilical cord of a female worker's baby. Details of the settlement are expected to be unveiled on Jan. 13, 2006. Attorneys for both sides told an EPA administrative law judge on Nov. 23 that they had struck an agreement but needed more time for the agency to go through legal procedures to make the deal official. The agreement would settle EPA's allegations that DuPont failed to report that it found perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in the umbilical cord and, later, in public drinking water supplies near a company's facility outside of Parkersburg, W.Va. (shown). DuPont maintains that trace amounts of PFOA, such as those found in the infant, do not pose a health risk. DuPont currently is the sole U.S. manufacturer of the synthetic chemical, which is widely found at low levels in humans and wildlife. The company uses PFOA to manufacture its Teflon brand of polytetrafluoroethylene.