The Australian government is suing 3M for A$2 billion (£1.1 billion) in damages to recover costs from per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination at 28 defence bases across the country.
The government alleges 3M withheld a range of information and misrepresented the effects of the company’s aqueous film-forming foams (AFFF). This includes what it knew about the products’ environmental risks. 3M disputes these claims.
The lawsuit says 3M gave assurances about disposal and environmental safety that were inconsistent with what the company knew at the time.
This is the largest ever claim brought by Australia, which the government says reflects the ‘past and future environmental, economic and cultural costs of the contamination’.
Speaking to the press, attorney general Michelle Rowland said 3M withheld a range of information, including: ‘3M’s own environmental laboratory testing which showed there was significant adverse environmental effects associated with the use of 3M firefighting foam’.
In response, 3M said it has never manufactured PFAS in Australia and ceased sales of the AFFF products in Australia in 2005. ‘Despite this, the Department of Defence continued to use PFAS-containing firefighting foams for nearly two decades longer.’ The company will contest the claims through the legal process.
Historical use of these foams has led to widespread PFAS contamination – particularly at defence bases and airports through extensive use for training as well as emergency response. In Australia’s civil airports, foams containing two of the most hazardous PFAS, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), were phased out in 2003, and fluorine free foam has been used since 2010.
3M also faces litigation in the US over PFAS in firefighting foam. In 2024, Texas attorney general Ken Paxton sued 3M alongside DuPont and related firms, claiming the companies had scientific proof of the dangers of these chemicals, but continued marketing products containing them as safe for consumer use in Texas for over 50 years.
Several cases have been brought against DuPont and its spin-off Chemours, which took on most of DuPont’s PFAS business. In 2024 an interim decision by the Dutch courts ruled that Chemours was liable for environmental damage caused by releases of PFAS from its Dordrecht plant between 1984 and ‘at least’ 1998. In 2025, the US state of New Jersey agreed on a settlement deal valued at more than $2 billion (£1.5 billion) with DuPont, Chemours and second spin-off Corteva, to resolve PFAS contamination across the state.
PFAS – also known as ‘forever chemicals’ – are a family of an estimated 15,000 synthetic chemicals that have been widely used in consumer products globally since the 1950s. They all share a characteristic carbon chain with multiple fluorine atoms attached. They do not degrade easily in the environment because the carbon–fluorine bond is among the strongest in existence. The unique properties of these substances confer characteristics like repellence to oil, grease and water, as well temperature resistance and friction reduction. This helps to create products that are non-stick and stain-resistant, for example.
However, PFAS are also highly mobile in the environment and they bioaccumulate, as well as biomagnify, up the food chain. PFOA and PFOS – the best studied of these substances – have been linked to serious health conditions like reproductive and developmental disorders, reduced immune function and certain types of cancer.
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