Niki Sharma, Attorney General, has released the following statement on the Province’s civil claim on ‘forever chemicals’:

“The Province of British Columbia has taken the lead in Canada in prosecuting civil damages claims against corporations that cause widespread public harms to people in B.C., including in recent years against tobacco and opiate manufacturers.

“One part of our work as government is to protect the integrity of our natural resources and to hold the bad actors accountable.

“Today, B.C. is leading again, as the first jurisdiction in Canada to hold manufacturers of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly known as ‘forever chemicals,’ accountable for the widespread PFAS contamination affecting drinking-water systems across Canada.

“The Province has filed a national class proceeding in British Columbia Supreme Court to recover the costs of detecting and removing the ‘forever chemicals’ from drinking-water systems across the country.

“B.C. is suing the defendants listed in the claim for negligently designing defective products, negligently failing to warn of the risks associated with their products, breaches of the Competition Act and civil conspiracy.

“This class action seeks compensation for the cost of issues caused by ‘forever chemicals’ being present in our drinking-water systems. This case will ensure that companies that created the problem, and profited from these chemicals, pay their fair share.”