3M’s WARNING to FIREFIGHTERS
SORRY THERE IS NONE.
In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month I would like to lend our support to the “Think Before You Pink” Campaign by Breast Cancer Action
For firefighters the risks of cancer are very well known. But what is not well known is that 3M knew of the adverse health effects of the chemicals used in the product firefighters use to put out Class B fires. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Class_B_fire
From the files of Environmental Working Group:
https://www.ewg.org/research/pfcs-global-contaminants/dupont%E2%80%99s-spin-about-pfoa
Mammary tumors. Of special concern is the observed association of PFOA exposure with mammary fibroadenomas in female rats. In a 2-year bioassay sponsored by 3M and carried out by the Riker Laboratory, the incidence of mammary fibroadenomas in treated rats was significantly higher than that in study controls [9] Sibinski, LJ. 1987. Two-Year oral (diet) toxicity/carcinogenicity study of fluorochemical FC-143 (perfluorooctane ammonium carboxylate) in rats. Report prepared for 3M, St. Paul, Minnesota by Riker Laboratories Inc. Study №0281CR0012; 8EHQ-1087–0394, October 16, 1987 Reviewed in US EPA “Revised Draft PFOA Hazard Assessment-Robust Study Annex” AR226–1137, (pp. 260–267; PDF pp 157–164).
But here’s what you should know about 3M and firefighters.
3M is IMMERSED IN EPIC PROPORTIONS IN EVERY ASPECT OF FIREFIGHTER CANCER PREVENTION, SPONSORSHIP, EDUCATION, and, since the early 1970’s have sat every year as voting members of the National Fire Protection Association Standards for FOAM. Not once have they raised the sound of alarm to the firefighters and workers who are wading, inhaling, working with, and in many cases are literally washing trucks, and PPE with toxic PFAS.
By being a voting member of the NFPA FOAM 11 committee, 3M is able to watch the hen house. They are able to sit at the table AND remain silent. There is no clause that manufacturers must list known health effects, and in fact 3M did not. It did list AFFF as possibly harmful to aquatic life and some fish species in the ‘ANNEX’ of the FOAM 11 reports.
SF Fire Department sees spike in breast cancer rate
Officials said 15 percent of the female firefighters between 40 and 50 years old have been diagnosed with breast cancer https://www.firerescue1.com/breast-cancer-awareness/articles/sf-fire-department-sees-spike-in-breast-cancer-rate-zzXbdnEgQR2CRCQu/
Now, while 3M is sleeping with the fire service and throwing globs of money at every aspect of our firefighting cancer outreach and sponsoring our CANCER EVERYTHINGS…. Their April 12, 2019 response to Attorney Robert Bilott is everything you need to know:
Fire Chief Kevin Hardwick v 3M, DuPont, Chemours, et al.,
https://medium.com/@dianecotter/4-12-2019-robert-bilotts-response-to-motion-to-dismiss-by-3m-dupont-et-al-26bae81175e8
INTRODUCTION
If ever behavior warranted scrutiny from a court, Defendants’ behavior is it. Defendants created chemical compounds that do not exist in nature and exposed the world to them — without warning, without asking permission, without regulation, without concern for the damage they were doing. These chemicals have entered the bodies of nearly every person in the United States, including Plaintiff Kevin Hardwick, without their knowledge or consent. These chemicals are harmful to humans, and Defendants knew it for decades, but didn’t tell anyone. They kept on releasing their chemicals into the world, knowing and fully expecting that their chemicals would get into, stay in, and build up in more and more people. In essence, Defendants used the bodies of hundreds of millions of Americans as their own toxic waste dumps without their knowledge or permission. The nature and extent of the resulting injury is unprecedented in scope, severity, and sheer brazenness.
B. Mr. Hardwick’s Injury Is Fairly Traceable to Defendants.
Defendants claim that the PFAS inside Mr. Hardwick is not fairly traceable to them as a matter of law because he cannot yet identify which Defendants’ PFAS has altered his body without his consent. (See Joint Mot. at 10.) This is a corollary to their injury-in-fact argument — because we all harmed everyone, Defendants say, we are immune from suit by anyone. That is not the law of traceable injury.
(if ever I needed a eye popping, nose growing , eye-rolling emoji it is right here right now…. )
What we can’t wrap our head around is how a corporation so prevalent in the fire service, with so much clout, could literally slap us in the face with the statements made at the September 10th, 2019 House Oversight Hearing of ‘The Devil They Knew’. https://www.northcarolinahealthnews.org/2019/09/18/pfas-chemical-company-execs-under-fire-in-congress/
Wasserman Schultz: “Are any of your companies that were responsible for using any of these chemicals that firefighters and military service members were exposed to planning any type of compensation to harmed victims?”
Responding to Wasserman Schultz’s question, Denise Rutherford, 3M’s senior vice president of corporate affairs, said 3M has no plans to compensate people because there is no scientific evidence proving that PFOA or PFOS have caused anyone adverse health effects, a statement she repeated throughout the hearing.
Now.. you would think that would be shocking enough. But it’s not. Because as they do yearly, 3M, DuPont, Chemours etc are the big money sponsors of the International Association of Firefighters Cancer Summit.. https://redmondems.iaff.org/registered-exhibitors-and-sponsors
With sponsors like that who needs enemies…
Join us in telling 3M to stop pinkwashing their toxic forever chemicals! Let 3M know that if they really care about breast cancer they need to stop producing, using, and selling PFAS. https://p2a.co/lMw0oAB
Take action now: It’s time that 3M put our health before their PFAS-driven profits! Say Never to Forever Chemicals! …. https://bcaction.org/
For a much deeper look into 3M in NFPA and the fire service please read:
https://medium.com/@dianecotter/how-is-it-3m-dupont-and-others-can-sit-on-nfpa-and-not-disclose-toxins-in-equipment-knowing-if-fead0cb24193
Think Before You Pink.
Diane Cotter
www.yourturnoutgearandpfoa.com