The Australian government has launched a landmark lawsuit against 3M, the conglomerate behind a class of toxic chemicals that don't break down. Sources confirm the suit targets the company's role in supplying aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF), a firefighting agent laced with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). These are the so-called 'forever chemicals'. They are now seeping into groundwater across the country.
This isn't a flash in the pan. Uncovered documents from Australia's Department of Defence show that for decades, the military relied on 3M's foam for training exercises and real emergencies. The chemicals leached into soil and water tables, poisoning farming communities and military bases. Now the government is saying enough. It accuses 3M of knowing the risks and failing to disclose them. The claim: the company's products are 'defective' and its conduct 'misleading'.
I've been watching this unfold for months. The parallels to the opioid litigation in the US and the asbestos battle in the UK are stark. 3M faces a wall of lawsuits worldwide, but this is the first time a national government has gone after the company on such a scale. The suit is filed by the Commonwealth of Australia, not a state attorney general or a private class. That is the money shot. This is sovereign power exerted against a corporate titan.
Let me be blunt: PFAS are not a problem that evaporates. They persist in the human body, linked to cancers, thyroid disorders, and reproductive harm. They are in our blood, in our water, in the fish we eat. 3M knew this since the 1970s, as internal memoranda show. But they kept selling the foam. The Australian lawsuit is a direct shot at that history. It seeks to recover the cost of cleaning up contamination across dozens of sites, from RAAF bases to fire training grounds.
The numbers are staggering. The Australian Taxpayers will foot the bill for remediation unless 3M is held accountable. The government is demanding compensation and costs. It's a reckoning.
Of course, 3M will fight. They will argue that the foam saved lives. That they followed the rules. That too many years have passed. But the documents don't lie. The science is settled. The chemicals are in the water. The question is not whether 3M bears responsibility, but how much they will pay.
I spoke to a source inside the Defence department who asked for anonymity. 'We knew we had a problem for years,' they said. 'But nobody wanted to upset the supply chain. Now the chain is breaking.'
This lawsuit is a signal to every multinational that plays fast and loose with public health. The age of immunity is ending. Judges and juries are beginning to ask the question I've been asking for a decade: where is the money going, and who is left holding the poisoned water?
The answer is coming. And it's not looking good for the suits at 3M.
For now, the announcement is fresh. The legal teams are preparing. I'll be following the money, as always.
