#appalachia — Public Fediverse posts

#Introduction I'm Sunflower. I love #Appalachia & I'm trying to take back owning my #music. Looking for folks w/similar music taste like
Dolly Parton
Mumford & Sons
Old Dominion
Green Day
Hootie & the Blowfish
Cold War Kids
Joywave
Artic Monkeys
CCR
Young the Giant
Chris Stapleton
Shania Twain
Blonde
Smashing Pumpkins
The Killers
Temper City
Goo Goo Dolls
The Cranberries
Alabama Shakes
Smash Mouth
Coldplay
ELO
NEEDTOBREATHE
Jelly Roll
Good Charlotte
Cigarettes @ Sunset
Sister Hazel

#Introduction I'm Sunflower. I love #Appalachia & I'm trying to take back owning my #music. Looking for folks w/similar music taste like
Dolly Parton
Mumford & Sons
Old Dominion
Green Day
Hootie & the Blowfish
Cold War Kids
Joywave
Artic Monkeys
CCR
Young the Giant
Chris Stapleton
Shania Twain
Blonde
Smashing Pumpkins
The Killers
Temper City
Goo Goo Dolls
The Cranberries
Alabama Shakes
Smash Mouth
Coldplay
ELO
NEEDTOBREATHE
Jelly Roll
Good Charlotte
Cigarettes @ Sunset
Sister Hazel

#Introduction I'm Sunflower. I love #Appalachia & I'm trying to take back owning my #music. Looking for folks w/similar music taste like
Dolly Parton
Mumford & Sons
Old Dominion
Green Day
Hootie & the Blowfish
Cold War Kids
Joywave
Artic Monkeys
CCR
Young the Giant
Chris Stapleton
Shania Twain
Blonde
Smashing Pumpkins
The Killers
Temper City
Goo Goo Dolls
The Cranberries
Alabama Shakes
Smash Mouth
Coldplay
ELO
NEEDTOBREATHE
Jelly Roll
Good Charlotte
Cigarettes @ Sunset
Sister Hazel

#Introduction I'm Sunflower. I love #Appalachia & I'm trying to take back owning my #music. Looking for folks w/similar music taste like
Dolly Parton
Mumford & Sons
Old Dominion
Green Day
Hootie & the Blowfish
Cold War Kids
Joywave
Artic Monkeys
CCR
Young the Giant
Chris Stapleton
Shania Twain
Blonde
Smashing Pumpkins
The Killers
Temper City
Goo Goo Dolls
The Cranberries
Alabama Shakes
Smash Mouth
Coldplay
ELO
NEEDTOBREATHE
Jelly Roll
Good Charlotte
Cigarettes @ Sunset
Sister Hazel

#Introduction I'm Sunflower. I love #Appalachia & I'm trying to take back owning my #music. Looking for folks w/similar music taste like
Dolly Parton
Mumford & Sons
Old Dominion
Green Day
Hootie & the Blowfish
Cold War Kids
Joywave
Artic Monkeys
CCR
Young the Giant
Chris Stapleton
Shania Twain
Blonde
Smashing Pumpkins
The Killers
Temper City
Goo Goo Dolls
The Cranberries
Alabama Shakes
Smash Mouth
Coldplay
ELO
NEEDTOBREATHE
Jelly Roll
Good Charlotte
Cigarettes @ Sunset
Sister Hazel

Webs & sunbeams #sun #photography #macro #Appalachia #web

Webs & sunbeams #sun #photography #macro #Appalachia #web

Webs & sunbeams #sun #photography #macro #Appalachia #web

Webs & sunbeams #sun #photography #macro #Appalachia #web

Webs & sunbeams #sun #photography #macro #Appalachia #web

To Live Here, You Have to Fight How Women Led Appalachian Movements for Social Justice, 2017

Launched in 1964, the War on Poverty quickly took aim at the coalfields of southern Appalachia. There, the federal government found unexpected allies among working-class white women devoted to a local tradition of citizen caregiving and seasoned by decades of activism and community service.

#books
#nonfiction
#America
#Appalachia
#SocialJustice
#poverty
#women

#Haunted #Appalachia | NEVER #Whistle in the #Mountains at #Night #Beauty andtheBeasts #yt #spoopy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3z5RJOpv7o

Appalachian Werewolf Legends: Skinwalker & European Lore #werewolf #appalachia #skinwalker

Poetry in Crannóg Magazine Now Available

My poem “Weathering” is in Crannóg Magazine‘s Issue 64. The print version is available in bookshops all across Ireland (incl. The Winding Stair and Dubray Books in Dublin and Charlie Byrnes in Galway); Foyle’s in London; City Lights in San Francisco; and Harvard’s bookstore in Cambridge. Full list of stockists here. It can also be ordered online.

So, I'm pretty excited about this book. This is absolutely a work of fiction. I begin by stating that. Nine years ago, however, I encountered the main character of this book in real life. A rural county sheriff who was a bad person. Investigating him and his cronies led to this tall tale of corruption, crime, and the sorts of malfeasance that can fester in a remote Appalachian setting where the law is whatever the powerful say it is. The names and crimes are altered for fictional purposes. My mother was a proud West Virginia "hillbilly," a term she used to describe herself, not as the derogatory inference as it has become today. She loved her West Virginia roots and her big family. So, the book's flavor is steeped in her corny sayings and my grandmother's words. I can still hear "Lawsy mercy" in my head. So, someday when "It's hotter 'n blazes" or when "it's colder than a well-digger's ankles" outside, I hope you'll curl up and enjoy reading my Appalachian novel GOOSE CREEK HOLLER. The ebook is now up for preorder at all online retailers with a delivery date of 8/1/26. MONEY. MOUNTAINS. MURDER. Enjoy. #novel #fiction #reading #readingCommunity #readers #read #author #authors #readThis #preorder #writingCommunity #appalachia #hills #newBook #new #books #mastodon #bookstodon #booksky #bookReview #writing #publishing #country #character #sheriff #corruption #crimeFiction #crime #book #slang #southern #words #criminal #murder #marijuana #goosecreekholler #sophiajanehayden

Hype for the Future 235I: Belmont County, Ohio

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/06/23/hype-for-the-future-235i-belmont-county-ohio/

Hype for the Future 235I: Belmont County, Ohio

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/06/23/hype-for-the-future-235i-belmont-county-ohio/

Hype for the Future 235I: Belmont County, Ohio

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/06/23/hype-for-the-future-235i-belmont-county-ohio/

Hype for the Future 235I: Belmont County, Ohio

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/06/23/hype-for-the-future-235i-belmont-county-ohio/

Hype for the Future 235I: Belmont County, Ohio

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/06/23/hype-for-the-future-235i-belmont-county-ohio/

Hype for the Future 235H: Monroe County, Ohio

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/06/23/hype-for-the-future-235h-monroe-county-ohio/

Hype for the Future 235H: Monroe County, Ohio

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/06/23/hype-for-the-future-235h-monroe-county-ohio/

Hype for the Future 235H: Monroe County, Ohio

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/06/23/hype-for-the-future-235h-monroe-county-ohio/

Hype for the Future 235H: Monroe County, Ohio

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/06/23/hype-for-the-future-235h-monroe-county-ohio/

Hype for the Future 235H: Monroe County, Ohio

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/06/23/hype-for-the-future-235h-monroe-county-ohio/

We had some #storms the other day that ended in a beautiful #sunset of purples and pinks. Getting better at capturing them with the camera.

#Clouds #MicroFourThirds #Appalachia #EastCoastKin #ECK #Olympus #SouthernTier

Hype for the Future 121B: Churchville, Virginia

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/03/01/hype-for-the-future-121b-churchville-virginia/

Hype for the Future 104E: The National Forests of North Carolina

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/02/12/hype-for-the-future-104e-the-national-forests-of-north-carolina/

Hype for the Future 103P: George Washington and Jefferson National Forests

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/02/11/hype-for-the-future-103p-george-washington-and-jefferson-national-forests/

Hype for the Future 100E: Madison County, North Carolina

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/02/08/hype-for-the-future-100e-madison-county-north-carolina/

Hype for the Future 96A: Highland and Bath Counties, Virginia

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/02/04/hype-for-the-future-96a-highland-and-bath-counties-virginia/

A little #liminal night photography for today’s #JanuArty prompt: #trees

#NightPhotography #ClassicMono #StreetPhotography #Appalachia #Fog #MicroFourThirds

This is about as close as we get to #Skyline out here. But I think it's a good view.

📷 #Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark III
🔎 Olympus M.Zuiko 14-42mm F3.5-5.6 R

#Appalachia #SmallTown #StreetPhotography #BlackAndWhitePhotography #ClassicMono #Monochrome #SouthernTier #WesternNY

Our local green space has some beautiful #orange #Coneflowers this year.

📷 OColorADay-D E-M10 Mark III
🔎 Olympus M.Zuiko 14-42mm F3.5-5.6 R

#ColorADay #OrangeSun #EastCoastKin #Flowers #Rudbeckia #Summer #FlowerPhotography #MicroFourThirds #NaturePhotography #Gardens #Appalachia #SouthernTier

I miss this walking place. It's Chestnut Hill Cemetery in Portville, NY. Nice cardio hill, pretty views, quiet. I need to find myself a similar route around here.

#ColorADay #SatGreen #Cemeteries #Landscape #EastCoastKin #Appalachia #SouthernTier #Hillside #MobilePhotography #iPhonePhotography

Today was busy, so just getting to my daily photos.

Here's a lil cheerful guy on the side of the road, I love how the #BlackAndWhite gives the petals a paint-like quality.

#BnW_Macro #MicroFourThirds #EastCoastKin #Flowers #Skies #ClassicMono #Plants #Appalachia #SouthernTier

So. Much. #Texture.

📷 Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark III
🔎 Olympus M.Zuiko 14-42mm F3.5-5.6 R

#ColorADay #BWFri #MicroFourThirds #Doors #UrbanDecay #PeelingPaint #StreetPhotography #BlackAndWhite #BNW #Monochrome #WesternNY #Appalachia #SouthernTier

A moment of #calm for #ForestFriday.

📷 Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark III
🔎 Olympus M.Zuiko 14-42mm F3.5-5.6 R

#Moss #Green #Brown #Trees #Forest #Appalachia #SouthernTier #WesternNY #MicroFourThirds #NaturePhotography #Mosstodon #LichenSubscribe

A bit of Cuba Lake for #FishyFriday.

📷 Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark III
🔎 Olympus M.Zuiko 40-150mm F4.0-5.6 R

#FromAbove #Water #Ripples #Reflections #NatureObservation #QuietWater #WesternNY #NewYorkState #SouthernTier #Appalachia #MicroFourThirds #Fishing #Fish

Trading my #WestVirginia #Ancestor Farmhouse for a #Georgia #Bungalow

New #Blog Post: From One #Mountain Home to Another: Trading West Virginia Roots for a Georgia Ridge.

It was incredibly difficult to let go of the hope of buying my Grandparent's farm in #Appalachia.

https://ancestryroads.blogspot.com/2025/08/from-one-mountain-home-to-another.html

@Appalachian #Genealogy #familyhistory

One more photo for today. A beautiful #sunset captured #MainStreet that I think fits the bill for the #AlphabetChallenge and #WeekFisForFire this week.

#Sunset #Photography #StreetPhotography #SmallTown #GoldenHour #Architecture #CityScape #EveningLight #SouthernTier #Appalachia

Day One: Journey to Salt Lake City for #RootsTech2025.

https://youtube.com/shorts/yxI81SMo6L4

#Genealogy #RootsTech #FamilyHistory #Appalachia #FamilyTree #SaltLakeCity @wikitree @DavidR

Notorious US #ChemicalPlant polluting water with toxic #PFAS, lawsuit claims

Complaint says #Chemours factory dramatized in Hollywood movie #DarkWaters continues to pollute #WestVirginia river

by Tom Perkins, January 27, 2025

"The chemical giant Chemours’s notorious West Virginia PFAS plant is regularly polluting nearby water with high levels of toxic 'forever chemicals', a new lawsuit alleges.

"It represents the latest salvo in a decades-old fight over pollution from the plant, called Washington Works, which continues despite public health advocates winning significant legal battles.

The new federal complaint claims #WashingtonWorks has been spitting out levels of PFAS waste significantly higher than what a discharge permit has allowed since 2023, which is contaminating the #OhioRiver in #ParkersburgWestVirginia, a town of about 50,000 people in #Appalachia.

"The factory was the focal point of a Hollywood movie, Dark Waters. It dramatized the story of how the pollution widely sickened Parkersburg residents, and the David v Goliath legal saga in which a group of residents and attorneys took on Chemours, then part of DuPont.
The findings ‘highlight the importance of careful scrutiny of novel chemicals’, said Irene Jacz, a study co-author and Iowa State economist.

"An epidemiological study stemming from the case blew the lid off of the health risks of PFAS, and ultimately cost #DuPont about $700m.

"Though the landmark case still reverberates across the regulatory landscape, the suit started almost 25 years ago, concluded in 2016, and Chemours’s pollution continues. The new lawsuit is part of other legal actions related to the facility that have filled the gap left by weak regulatory action, local advocates say. The never-ending struggle 'wears you out', added Joe Kiger, a Parkersburg resident who was one of the original litigants in 2001.

"'We have put up with this for 24 years, and [Chemours] is still polluting, they’re still putting this stuff in the water,' Kiger said.

"The new lawsuit, filed by the #WestVirginiaRiversCoalition, alleges 'numerous violations' since the level of PFAS the company is permitted to discharge per a consent order was lowered in early 2023. Among the contaminants are #PFOA, a PFAS chemical to which virtually no level of exposure in drinking water is safe, the #EnvironmentalProtectionAgency (#EPA) has found. It also includes #GenX, a compound for which the EPA has similarly found very low exposure levels can cause health problems.

"The EPA ordered Chemours to take corrective action, but the company has done nothing in response, and the agency has not taken further action, the suit states. The complaint does not mention drinking water, which is largely filtered. But the suit alleges the ongoing pollution prevents residents from using the river for recreation.

"In a statement, Chemours said the 'concerns are being addressed' through the consent order. It also noted it was renewing discharge permits with the state, and was working with regulators 'to navigate both the consent order and the permit renewal process'.

"'Chemours recognizes the Coalition as a community stakeholder and invites the Coalition to engage directly with the Washington Works team,' a spokesperson wrote.

"The EPA and West Virginia Rivers Coalition declined to comment because litigation is ongoing.

"Kiger and others who have taken on Chemours and DuPont railed against the company, accusing it of 'greed' and putting profits above residents’ health. Some in Parkersburg refer to the waste as the 'Devil's Piss'.

"'They do what they can to make money,' said Harry Deitzler, a West Virginia attorney who helped lead past lawsuits.

"'The officers in the corporation sometimes don’t care about what’s right and wrong – they need to make money for shareholders and the lawsuits make everyone play by the same rules.'

"Still, most residents are not aware of the ongoing pollution, those who spoke with the Guardian say. Chemours is a large employer that still wields power locally, and spends heavily on charitable giving. Many remain supportive of the company, regardless of the pollution, Kiger said.

"'That’s the kind of stuff you’re up against,' he added. 'People put a blind trust in them. It could be snowing out and Chemours would tell everyone it’s 80F [27C] and sunny, and everyone will grab their tan lotion.'

"The saga began in the late 1990s when the plant’s pollution was suspected of sickening nearby livestock, and an investigation by attorneys revealed the alarming levels at which PFAS was being discharged into the water and environment.

"A class action lawsuit yielded about $70m in damages for area residents in 2004, but the litigation did not prove DuPont’s PFAS pollution was behind a rash of #cancer, #KidneyDisease, stubbornly high cholesterol and other widespread health problems in the region.

"Instead of dividing the settlement up among tens of thousands of residents, which would have only provided each with several hundred dollars, the money went toward developing an epidemiological study with independent scientists to verify that widespread local health issues were caused by DuPont’s pollution.

"The move was a gamble that ultimately paid off – the study of about 70,000 people showed by 2012 that PFOA probably caused some forms of cancer, #ThyroidDisease, persistently #HighCholesterol, pregnancy-induced #hypertension and #autoimmune problems.

"Subsequent studies have shown links between the chemical and a host of other serious health problems – #BirthDefects, #neurotoxicity, kidney disease and #LiverDisease – that residents in the area suffered.

"DuPont and Chemours in 2017 settled for $671m in costs for about 3,500 injury suits, and have paid more to install water-filtration systems throughout the region. Separately, Chemours in 2023 settled with the state of #Ohio for $110m for pollution largely from Washington Works.

"The EPA and state regulatory agencies have at times been staffed with former DuPont managers or industry allies, and litigation has been the only way to get any meaningful movement, said Rob Bilott, the attorney who led the original class-action suit.

'"It’s infuriating,' Bilott said. 'It took decades of making DuPont documents and internal data public, and getting the story out through movies, news articles, books and public engagement, and that’s what finally pushed the needle here. This is the impact of citizens forcing it through decades of litigation.'

"The latest lawsuit is a citizen’s suit under the #CleanWaterAct. Such suits give citizens the power to ask a judge to enforce federal law when a polluter is violating it and regulators fail to act.

"The lawsuit asks a judge to order the company to pay $66,000 for each day it has been in violation, which is stipulated in the permit. That would total around $50m, but the main goal is to stop the pollution.

"The EPA has acknowledged Chemours is violating the law, but has 'taken no further enforcement action regarding Chemours’s violations as of the date of this complaint', the suit reads."

Source:
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jan/27/chemours-pfas-pollution-lawsuit

Archived:
https://archive.ph/p3wA6
#Environment #PFASPollution #PollutionRunoff #WaterIsLife #DevilsPiss

Notorious US #ChemicalPlant polluting water with toxic #PFAS, lawsuit claims

Complaint says #Chemours factory dramatized in Hollywood movie #DarkWaters continues to pollute #WestVirginia river

by Tom Perkins, January 27, 2025

"The chemical giant Chemours’s notorious West Virginia PFAS plant is regularly polluting nearby water with high levels of toxic 'forever chemicals', a new lawsuit alleges.

"It represents the latest salvo in a decades-old fight over pollution from the plant, called Washington Works, which continues despite public health advocates winning significant legal battles.

The new federal complaint claims #WashingtonWorks has been spitting out levels of PFAS waste significantly higher than what a discharge permit has allowed since 2023, which is contaminating the #OhioRiver in #ParkersburgWestVirginia, a town of about 50,000 people in #Appalachia.

"The factory was the focal point of a Hollywood movie, Dark Waters. It dramatized the story of how the pollution widely sickened Parkersburg residents, and the David v Goliath legal saga in which a group of residents and attorneys took on Chemours, then part of DuPont.
The findings ‘highlight the importance of careful scrutiny of novel chemicals’, said Irene Jacz, a study co-author and Iowa State economist.

"An epidemiological study stemming from the case blew the lid off of the health risks of PFAS, and ultimately cost #DuPont about $700m.

"Though the landmark case still reverberates across the regulatory landscape, the suit started almost 25 years ago, concluded in 2016, and Chemours’s pollution continues. The new lawsuit is part of other legal actions related to the facility that have filled the gap left by weak regulatory action, local advocates say. The never-ending struggle 'wears you out', added Joe Kiger, a Parkersburg resident who was one of the original litigants in 2001.

"'We have put up with this for 24 years, and [Chemours] is still polluting, they’re still putting this stuff in the water,' Kiger said.

"The new lawsuit, filed by the #WestVirginiaRiversCoalition, alleges 'numerous violations' since the level of PFAS the company is permitted to discharge per a consent order was lowered in early 2023. Among the contaminants are #PFOA, a PFAS chemical to which virtually no level of exposure in drinking water is safe, the #EnvironmentalProtectionAgency (#EPA) has found. It also includes #GenX, a compound for which the EPA has similarly found very low exposure levels can cause health problems.

"The EPA ordered Chemours to take corrective action, but the company has done nothing in response, and the agency has not taken further action, the suit states. The complaint does not mention drinking water, which is largely filtered. But the suit alleges the ongoing pollution prevents residents from using the river for recreation.

"In a statement, Chemours said the 'concerns are being addressed' through the consent order. It also noted it was renewing discharge permits with the state, and was working with regulators 'to navigate both the consent order and the permit renewal process'.

"'Chemours recognizes the Coalition as a community stakeholder and invites the Coalition to engage directly with the Washington Works team,' a spokesperson wrote.

"The EPA and West Virginia Rivers Coalition declined to comment because litigation is ongoing.

"Kiger and others who have taken on Chemours and DuPont railed against the company, accusing it of 'greed' and putting profits above residents’ health. Some in Parkersburg refer to the waste as the 'Devil's Piss'.

"'They do what they can to make money,' said Harry Deitzler, a West Virginia attorney who helped lead past lawsuits.

"'The officers in the corporation sometimes don’t care about what’s right and wrong – they need to make money for shareholders and the lawsuits make everyone play by the same rules.'

"Still, most residents are not aware of the ongoing pollution, those who spoke with the Guardian say. Chemours is a large employer that still wields power locally, and spends heavily on charitable giving. Many remain supportive of the company, regardless of the pollution, Kiger said.

"'That’s the kind of stuff you’re up against,' he added. 'People put a blind trust in them. It could be snowing out and Chemours would tell everyone it’s 80F [27C] and sunny, and everyone will grab their tan lotion.'

"The saga began in the late 1990s when the plant’s pollution was suspected of sickening nearby livestock, and an investigation by attorneys revealed the alarming levels at which PFAS was being discharged into the water and environment.

"A class action lawsuit yielded about $70m in damages for area residents in 2004, but the litigation did not prove DuPont’s PFAS pollution was behind a rash of #cancer, #KidneyDisease, stubbornly high cholesterol and other widespread health problems in the region.

"Instead of dividing the settlement up among tens of thousands of residents, which would have only provided each with several hundred dollars, the money went toward developing an epidemiological study with independent scientists to verify that widespread local health issues were caused by DuPont’s pollution.

"The move was a gamble that ultimately paid off – the study of about 70,000 people showed by 2012 that PFOA probably caused some forms of cancer, #ThyroidDisease, persistently #HighCholesterol, pregnancy-induced #hypertension and #autoimmune problems.

"Subsequent studies have shown links between the chemical and a host of other serious health problems – #BirthDefects, #neurotoxicity, kidney disease and #LiverDisease – that residents in the area suffered.

"DuPont and Chemours in 2017 settled for $671m in costs for about 3,500 injury suits, and have paid more to install water-filtration systems throughout the region. Separately, Chemours in 2023 settled with the state of #Ohio for $110m for pollution largely from Washington Works.

"The EPA and state regulatory agencies have at times been staffed with former DuPont managers or industry allies, and litigation has been the only way to get any meaningful movement, said Rob Bilott, the attorney who led the original class-action suit.

'"It’s infuriating,' Bilott said. 'It took decades of making DuPont documents and internal data public, and getting the story out through movies, news articles, books and public engagement, and that’s what finally pushed the needle here. This is the impact of citizens forcing it through decades of litigation.'

"The latest lawsuit is a citizen’s suit under the #CleanWaterAct. Such suits give citizens the power to ask a judge to enforce federal law when a polluter is violating it and regulators fail to act.

"The lawsuit asks a judge to order the company to pay $66,000 for each day it has been in violation, which is stipulated in the permit. That would total around $50m, but the main goal is to stop the pollution.

"The EPA has acknowledged Chemours is violating the law, but has 'taken no further enforcement action regarding Chemours’s violations as of the date of this complaint', the suit reads."

Source:
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jan/27/chemours-pfas-pollution-lawsuit

Archived:
https://archive.ph/p3wA6
#Environment #PFASPollution #PollutionRunoff #WaterIsLife #DevilsPiss

Notorious US #ChemicalPlant polluting water with toxic #PFAS, lawsuit claims

Complaint says #Chemours factory dramatized in Hollywood movie #DarkWaters continues to pollute #WestVirginia river

by Tom Perkins, January 27, 2025

"The chemical giant Chemours’s notorious West Virginia PFAS plant is regularly polluting nearby water with high levels of toxic 'forever chemicals', a new lawsuit alleges.

"It represents the latest salvo in a decades-old fight over pollution from the plant, called Washington Works, which continues despite public health advocates winning significant legal battles.

The new federal complaint claims #WashingtonWorks has been spitting out levels of PFAS waste significantly higher than what a discharge permit has allowed since 2023, which is contaminating the #OhioRiver in #ParkersburgWestVirginia, a town of about 50,000 people in #Appalachia.

"The factory was the focal point of a Hollywood movie, Dark Waters. It dramatized the story of how the pollution widely sickened Parkersburg residents, and the David v Goliath legal saga in which a group of residents and attorneys took on Chemours, then part of DuPont.
The findings ‘highlight the importance of careful scrutiny of novel chemicals’, said Irene Jacz, a study co-author and Iowa State economist.

"An epidemiological study stemming from the case blew the lid off of the health risks of PFAS, and ultimately cost #DuPont about $700m.

"Though the landmark case still reverberates across the regulatory landscape, the suit started almost 25 years ago, concluded in 2016, and Chemours’s pollution continues. The new lawsuit is part of other legal actions related to the facility that have filled the gap left by weak regulatory action, local advocates say. The never-ending struggle 'wears you out', added Joe Kiger, a Parkersburg resident who was one of the original litigants in 2001.

"'We have put up with this for 24 years, and [Chemours] is still polluting, they’re still putting this stuff in the water,' Kiger said.

"The new lawsuit, filed by the #WestVirginiaRiversCoalition, alleges 'numerous violations' since the level of PFAS the company is permitted to discharge per a consent order was lowered in early 2023. Among the contaminants are #PFOA, a PFAS chemical to which virtually no level of exposure in drinking water is safe, the #EnvironmentalProtectionAgency (#EPA) has found. It also includes #GenX, a compound for which the EPA has similarly found very low exposure levels can cause health problems.

"The EPA ordered Chemours to take corrective action, but the company has done nothing in response, and the agency has not taken further action, the suit states. The complaint does not mention drinking water, which is largely filtered. But the suit alleges the ongoing pollution prevents residents from using the river for recreation.

"In a statement, Chemours said the 'concerns are being addressed' through the consent order. It also noted it was renewing discharge permits with the state, and was working with regulators 'to navigate both the consent order and the permit renewal process'.

"'Chemours recognizes the Coalition as a community stakeholder and invites the Coalition to engage directly with the Washington Works team,' a spokesperson wrote.

"The EPA and West Virginia Rivers Coalition declined to comment because litigation is ongoing.

"Kiger and others who have taken on Chemours and DuPont railed against the company, accusing it of 'greed' and putting profits above residents’ health. Some in Parkersburg refer to the waste as the 'Devil's Piss'.

"'They do what they can to make money,' said Harry Deitzler, a West Virginia attorney who helped lead past lawsuits.

"'The officers in the corporation sometimes don’t care about what’s right and wrong – they need to make money for shareholders and the lawsuits make everyone play by the same rules.'

"Still, most residents are not aware of the ongoing pollution, those who spoke with the Guardian say. Chemours is a large employer that still wields power locally, and spends heavily on charitable giving. Many remain supportive of the company, regardless of the pollution, Kiger said.

"'That’s the kind of stuff you’re up against,' he added. 'People put a blind trust in them. It could be snowing out and Chemours would tell everyone it’s 80F [27C] and sunny, and everyone will grab their tan lotion.'

"The saga began in the late 1990s when the plant’s pollution was suspected of sickening nearby livestock, and an investigation by attorneys revealed the alarming levels at which PFAS was being discharged into the water and environment.

"A class action lawsuit yielded about $70m in damages for area residents in 2004, but the litigation did not prove DuPont’s PFAS pollution was behind a rash of #cancer, #KidneyDisease, stubbornly high cholesterol and other widespread health problems in the region.

"Instead of dividing the settlement up among tens of thousands of residents, which would have only provided each with several hundred dollars, the money went toward developing an epidemiological study with independent scientists to verify that widespread local health issues were caused by DuPont’s pollution.

"The move was a gamble that ultimately paid off – the study of about 70,000 people showed by 2012 that PFOA probably caused some forms of cancer, #ThyroidDisease, persistently #HighCholesterol, pregnancy-induced #hypertension and #autoimmune problems.

"Subsequent studies have shown links between the chemical and a host of other serious health problems – #BirthDefects, #neurotoxicity, kidney disease and #LiverDisease – that residents in the area suffered.

"DuPont and Chemours in 2017 settled for $671m in costs for about 3,500 injury suits, and have paid more to install water-filtration systems throughout the region. Separately, Chemours in 2023 settled with the state of #Ohio for $110m for pollution largely from Washington Works.

"The EPA and state regulatory agencies have at times been staffed with former DuPont managers or industry allies, and litigation has been the only way to get any meaningful movement, said Rob Bilott, the attorney who led the original class-action suit.

'"It’s infuriating,' Bilott said. 'It took decades of making DuPont documents and internal data public, and getting the story out through movies, news articles, books and public engagement, and that’s what finally pushed the needle here. This is the impact of citizens forcing it through decades of litigation.'

"The latest lawsuit is a citizen’s suit under the #CleanWaterAct. Such suits give citizens the power to ask a judge to enforce federal law when a polluter is violating it and regulators fail to act.

"The lawsuit asks a judge to order the company to pay $66,000 for each day it has been in violation, which is stipulated in the permit. That would total around $50m, but the main goal is to stop the pollution.

"The EPA has acknowledged Chemours is violating the law, but has 'taken no further enforcement action regarding Chemours’s violations as of the date of this complaint', the suit reads."

Source:
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jan/27/chemours-pfas-pollution-lawsuit

Archived:
https://archive.ph/p3wA6
#Environment #PFASPollution #PollutionRunoff #WaterIsLife #DevilsPiss

Notorious US #ChemicalPlant polluting water with toxic #PFAS, lawsuit claims

Complaint says #Chemours factory dramatized in Hollywood movie #DarkWaters continues to pollute #WestVirginia river

by Tom Perkins, January 27, 2025

"The chemical giant Chemours’s notorious West Virginia PFAS plant is regularly polluting nearby water with high levels of toxic 'forever chemicals', a new lawsuit alleges.

"It represents the latest salvo in a decades-old fight over pollution from the plant, called Washington Works, which continues despite public health advocates winning significant legal battles.

The new federal complaint claims #WashingtonWorks has been spitting out levels of PFAS waste significantly higher than what a discharge permit has allowed since 2023, which is contaminating the #OhioRiver in #ParkersburgWestVirginia, a town of about 50,000 people in #Appalachia.

"The factory was the focal point of a Hollywood movie, Dark Waters. It dramatized the story of how the pollution widely sickened Parkersburg residents, and the David v Goliath legal saga in which a group of residents and attorneys took on Chemours, then part of DuPont.
The findings ‘highlight the importance of careful scrutiny of novel chemicals’, said Irene Jacz, a study co-author and Iowa State economist.

"An epidemiological study stemming from the case blew the lid off of the health risks of PFAS, and ultimately cost #DuPont about $700m.

"Though the landmark case still reverberates across the regulatory landscape, the suit started almost 25 years ago, concluded in 2016, and Chemours’s pollution continues. The new lawsuit is part of other legal actions related to the facility that have filled the gap left by weak regulatory action, local advocates say. The never-ending struggle 'wears you out', added Joe Kiger, a Parkersburg resident who was one of the original litigants in 2001.

"'We have put up with this for 24 years, and [Chemours] is still polluting, they’re still putting this stuff in the water,' Kiger said.

"The new lawsuit, filed by the #WestVirginiaRiversCoalition, alleges 'numerous violations' since the level of PFAS the company is permitted to discharge per a consent order was lowered in early 2023. Among the contaminants are #PFOA, a PFAS chemical to which virtually no level of exposure in drinking water is safe, the #EnvironmentalProtectionAgency (#EPA) has found. It also includes #GenX, a compound for which the EPA has similarly found very low exposure levels can cause health problems.

"The EPA ordered Chemours to take corrective action, but the company has done nothing in response, and the agency has not taken further action, the suit states. The complaint does not mention drinking water, which is largely filtered. But the suit alleges the ongoing pollution prevents residents from using the river for recreation.

"In a statement, Chemours said the 'concerns are being addressed' through the consent order. It also noted it was renewing discharge permits with the state, and was working with regulators 'to navigate both the consent order and the permit renewal process'.

"'Chemours recognizes the Coalition as a community stakeholder and invites the Coalition to engage directly with the Washington Works team,' a spokesperson wrote.

"The EPA and West Virginia Rivers Coalition declined to comment because litigation is ongoing.

"Kiger and others who have taken on Chemours and DuPont railed against the company, accusing it of 'greed' and putting profits above residents’ health. Some in Parkersburg refer to the waste as the 'Devil's Piss'.

"'They do what they can to make money,' said Harry Deitzler, a West Virginia attorney who helped lead past lawsuits.

"'The officers in the corporation sometimes don’t care about what’s right and wrong – they need to make money for shareholders and the lawsuits make everyone play by the same rules.'

"Still, most residents are not aware of the ongoing pollution, those who spoke with the Guardian say. Chemours is a large employer that still wields power locally, and spends heavily on charitable giving. Many remain supportive of the company, regardless of the pollution, Kiger said.

"'That’s the kind of stuff you’re up against,' he added. 'People put a blind trust in them. It could be snowing out and Chemours would tell everyone it’s 80F [27C] and sunny, and everyone will grab their tan lotion.'

"The saga began in the late 1990s when the plant’s pollution was suspected of sickening nearby livestock, and an investigation by attorneys revealed the alarming levels at which PFAS was being discharged into the water and environment.

"A class action lawsuit yielded about $70m in damages for area residents in 2004, but the litigation did not prove DuPont’s PFAS pollution was behind a rash of #cancer, #KidneyDisease, stubbornly high cholesterol and other widespread health problems in the region.

"Instead of dividing the settlement up among tens of thousands of residents, which would have only provided each with several hundred dollars, the money went toward developing an epidemiological study with independent scientists to verify that widespread local health issues were caused by DuPont’s pollution.

"The move was a gamble that ultimately paid off – the study of about 70,000 people showed by 2012 that PFOA probably caused some forms of cancer, #ThyroidDisease, persistently #HighCholesterol, pregnancy-induced #hypertension and #autoimmune problems.

"Subsequent studies have shown links between the chemical and a host of other serious health problems – #BirthDefects, #neurotoxicity, kidney disease and #LiverDisease – that residents in the area suffered.

"DuPont and Chemours in 2017 settled for $671m in costs for about 3,500 injury suits, and have paid more to install water-filtration systems throughout the region. Separately, Chemours in 2023 settled with the state of #Ohio for $110m for pollution largely from Washington Works.

"The EPA and state regulatory agencies have at times been staffed with former DuPont managers or industry allies, and litigation has been the only way to get any meaningful movement, said Rob Bilott, the attorney who led the original class-action suit.

'"It’s infuriating,' Bilott said. 'It took decades of making DuPont documents and internal data public, and getting the story out through movies, news articles, books and public engagement, and that’s what finally pushed the needle here. This is the impact of citizens forcing it through decades of litigation.'

"The latest lawsuit is a citizen’s suit under the #CleanWaterAct. Such suits give citizens the power to ask a judge to enforce federal law when a polluter is violating it and regulators fail to act.

"The lawsuit asks a judge to order the company to pay $66,000 for each day it has been in violation, which is stipulated in the permit. That would total around $50m, but the main goal is to stop the pollution.

"The EPA has acknowledged Chemours is violating the law, but has 'taken no further enforcement action regarding Chemours’s violations as of the date of this complaint', the suit reads."

Source:
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jan/27/chemours-pfas-pollution-lawsuit

Archived:
https://archive.ph/p3wA6
#Environment #PFASPollution #PollutionRunoff #WaterIsLife #DevilsPiss

Notorious US #ChemicalPlant polluting water with toxic #PFAS, lawsuit claims

Complaint says #Chemours factory dramatized in Hollywood movie #DarkWaters continues to pollute #WestVirginia river

by Tom Perkins, January 27, 2025

"The chemical giant Chemours’s notorious West Virginia PFAS plant is regularly polluting nearby water with high levels of toxic 'forever chemicals', a new lawsuit alleges.

"It represents the latest salvo in a decades-old fight over pollution from the plant, called Washington Works, which continues despite public health advocates winning significant legal battles.

The new federal complaint claims #WashingtonWorks has been spitting out levels of PFAS waste significantly higher than what a discharge permit has allowed since 2023, which is contaminating the #OhioRiver in #ParkersburgWestVirginia, a town of about 50,000 people in #Appalachia.

"The factory was the focal point of a Hollywood movie, Dark Waters. It dramatized the story of how the pollution widely sickened Parkersburg residents, and the David v Goliath legal saga in which a group of residents and attorneys took on Chemours, then part of DuPont.
The findings ‘highlight the importance of careful scrutiny of novel chemicals’, said Irene Jacz, a study co-author and Iowa State economist.

"An epidemiological study stemming from the case blew the lid off of the health risks of PFAS, and ultimately cost #DuPont about $700m.

"Though the landmark case still reverberates across the regulatory landscape, the suit started almost 25 years ago, concluded in 2016, and Chemours’s pollution continues. The new lawsuit is part of other legal actions related to the facility that have filled the gap left by weak regulatory action, local advocates say. The never-ending struggle 'wears you out', added Joe Kiger, a Parkersburg resident who was one of the original litigants in 2001.

"'We have put up with this for 24 years, and [Chemours] is still polluting, they’re still putting this stuff in the water,' Kiger said.

"The new lawsuit, filed by the #WestVirginiaRiversCoalition, alleges 'numerous violations' since the level of PFAS the company is permitted to discharge per a consent order was lowered in early 2023. Among the contaminants are #PFOA, a PFAS chemical to which virtually no level of exposure in drinking water is safe, the #EnvironmentalProtectionAgency (#EPA) has found. It also includes #GenX, a compound for which the EPA has similarly found very low exposure levels can cause health problems.

"The EPA ordered Chemours to take corrective action, but the company has done nothing in response, and the agency has not taken further action, the suit states. The complaint does not mention drinking water, which is largely filtered. But the suit alleges the ongoing pollution prevents residents from using the river for recreation.

"In a statement, Chemours said the 'concerns are being addressed' through the consent order. It also noted it was renewing discharge permits with the state, and was working with regulators 'to navigate both the consent order and the permit renewal process'.

"'Chemours recognizes the Coalition as a community stakeholder and invites the Coalition to engage directly with the Washington Works team,' a spokesperson wrote.

"The EPA and West Virginia Rivers Coalition declined to comment because litigation is ongoing.

"Kiger and others who have taken on Chemours and DuPont railed against the company, accusing it of 'greed' and putting profits above residents’ health. Some in Parkersburg refer to the waste as the 'Devil's Piss'.

"'They do what they can to make money,' said Harry Deitzler, a West Virginia attorney who helped lead past lawsuits.

"'The officers in the corporation sometimes don’t care about what’s right and wrong – they need to make money for shareholders and the lawsuits make everyone play by the same rules.'

"Still, most residents are not aware of the ongoing pollution, those who spoke with the Guardian say. Chemours is a large employer that still wields power locally, and spends heavily on charitable giving. Many remain supportive of the company, regardless of the pollution, Kiger said.

"'That’s the kind of stuff you’re up against,' he added. 'People put a blind trust in them. It could be snowing out and Chemours would tell everyone it’s 80F [27C] and sunny, and everyone will grab their tan lotion.'

"The saga began in the late 1990s when the plant’s pollution was suspected of sickening nearby livestock, and an investigation by attorneys revealed the alarming levels at which PFAS was being discharged into the water and environment.

"A class action lawsuit yielded about $70m in damages for area residents in 2004, but the litigation did not prove DuPont’s PFAS pollution was behind a rash of #cancer, #KidneyDisease, stubbornly high cholesterol and other widespread health problems in the region.

"Instead of dividing the settlement up among tens of thousands of residents, which would have only provided each with several hundred dollars, the money went toward developing an epidemiological study with independent scientists to verify that widespread local health issues were caused by DuPont’s pollution.

"The move was a gamble that ultimately paid off – the study of about 70,000 people showed by 2012 that PFOA probably caused some forms of cancer, #ThyroidDisease, persistently #HighCholesterol, pregnancy-induced #hypertension and #autoimmune problems.

"Subsequent studies have shown links between the chemical and a host of other serious health problems – #BirthDefects, #neurotoxicity, kidney disease and #LiverDisease – that residents in the area suffered.

"DuPont and Chemours in 2017 settled for $671m in costs for about 3,500 injury suits, and have paid more to install water-filtration systems throughout the region. Separately, Chemours in 2023 settled with the state of #Ohio for $110m for pollution largely from Washington Works.

"The EPA and state regulatory agencies have at times been staffed with former DuPont managers or industry allies, and litigation has been the only way to get any meaningful movement, said Rob Bilott, the attorney who led the original class-action suit.

'"It’s infuriating,' Bilott said. 'It took decades of making DuPont documents and internal data public, and getting the story out through movies, news articles, books and public engagement, and that’s what finally pushed the needle here. This is the impact of citizens forcing it through decades of litigation.'

"The latest lawsuit is a citizen’s suit under the #CleanWaterAct. Such suits give citizens the power to ask a judge to enforce federal law when a polluter is violating it and regulators fail to act.

"The lawsuit asks a judge to order the company to pay $66,000 for each day it has been in violation, which is stipulated in the permit. That would total around $50m, but the main goal is to stop the pollution.

"The EPA has acknowledged Chemours is violating the law, but has 'taken no further enforcement action regarding Chemours’s violations as of the date of this complaint', the suit reads."

Source:
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jan/27/chemours-pfas-pollution-lawsuit

Archived:
https://archive.ph/p3wA6
#Environment #PFASPollution #PollutionRunoff #WaterIsLife #DevilsPiss

#EnergyTransition Report: #Biden-#Harris IRA #CleanEnergy credits boost #UnionJobs, economy in #Appalachia https://www.publicnewsservice.org/2024-09-10/budget-policy-and-priorities/report-ira-clean-energy-credits-boost-union-jobs-economy-in-appalachia/a92264-1

"there are about 57 clean energy projects in the region that represent over $5 billion in capital investments. Most of these are #solar, a couple #wind, small #hydropower and a couple battery projects... using unionized labor, better wages and hiring apprentices is economically impactful"

#USpol #Renewables #RenewableEnergy #Climate #ClimateChange

#EnergyTransition Report: #Biden-#Harris IRA #CleanEnergy credits boost #UnionJobs, economy in #Appalachia https://www.publicnewsservice.org/2024-09-10/budget-policy-and-priorities/report-ira-clean-energy-credits-boost-union-jobs-economy-in-appalachia/a92264-1

"there are about 57 clean energy projects in the region that represent over $5 billion in capital investments. Most of these are #solar, a couple #wind, small #hydropower and a couple battery projects... using unionized labor, better wages and hiring apprentices is economically impactful"

#USpol #Renewables #RenewableEnergy #Climate #ClimateChange

#EnergyTransition Report: #Biden-#Harris IRA #CleanEnergy credits boost #UnionJobs, economy in #Appalachia https://www.publicnewsservice.org/2024-09-10/budget-policy-and-priorities/report-ira-clean-energy-credits-boost-union-jobs-economy-in-appalachia/a92264-1

"there are about 57 clean energy projects in the region that represent over $5 billion in capital investments. Most of these are #solar, a couple #wind, small #hydropower and a couple battery projects... using unionized labor, better wages and hiring apprentices is economically impactful"

#USpol #Renewables #RenewableEnergy #Climate #ClimateChange