‘Lawsuit claims Gore-Tex poisoned drinking water near Maryland facilities,’ 3 April 2025

The makers of Gore-Tex, … poisoned drinking water and sickened residents around their facilities in rural Maryland, two lawsuits allege.

The facilities, about 90 miles north-east of Baltimore, polluted drinking water with levels up to 700 times above federal limits with some kinds of Pfas, a group of toxins known as “forever chemicals” due to their environmental longevity. The tainted water caused high rates of cancers and other diseases linked to Pfas exposure in the area, a class action suit alleges.

Meanwhile, Maryland is suing WL Gore and Associates, Gore-Tex’s parent company, over alleged environmental violations. Each suit claims Gore knew about its products’ dangers as early as the 1980s, but continued to put Pfas into local waters, which drain into the Chesapeake Bay, and emit the substances from smokestacks.

The company has said it only learned about PFOA, a common type of Pfas compound, in nearby groundwater two years ago, and has suggested it is not responsible for at least some of the pollution.

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The company set up a webpage defending its record, noting it has conducted some investigations. …

“Gore denies the allegations in the various lawsuits that have been recently filed. We have been and will remain committed to the health and safety of our Associates, our community, and the environment,” says a statement on the website.

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The suit details how the Pfas industry knew throughout the 1970s that the substances were dangerous, and a Gore executive knew by 1990 at the latest. …

The suit alleges Gore effectively lied to regulators about Pfas air pollution beginning in 1995 and the company also later destroyed documents detailing its pollution, the suit alleges.

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About 4,000 people are part of the class action suit. It and the state of Maryland demands the company cover cleanup costs, pay for medical costs, pay for upgrades to water utilities and provide clean water to residents, among other actions.