Georgia’s carpet industry dumped PFAS-laden wastewater into the Conasauga River for decades, creating one of the nation’s worst forever-chemical hot spots.
Key Takeaways
Shaw Industries and Mohawk Industries used Scotchgard and successor PFAS chemistries in carpet production through at least 2019, despite internal 3M warnings as early as 1999.
Dalton Utilities, the local water authority, held private meetings with carpet executives that shielded companies from oversight instead of enforcing contamination limits.
PFAS traveled from mill wastewater through treatment plants that cannot remove the chemicals, reaching drinking water for hundreds of thousands in Georgia and Alabama.
Carpet companies deflect blame to 3M and DuPont; chemical makers hid internal studies showing harm; regulators deferred to each other, leaving no party acting on risk.
The Trump EPA has announced plans to roll back or delay enforcement of Biden-era 2024 PFAS drinking water standards, leaving affected communities without a clear remediation path.
