For decades, Americans have trusted that their schools and workplaces were safe from unseen dangers. Yet, recent investigations and court rulings have revealed a troubling legacy: toxic industrial chemicals, once hailed for their utility, now linger in classrooms and factory grounds, threatening health and sparking legal battles from Vermont to Wales.
On December 15, 2025, the BBC reported that dozens of workers at the 3M factory in Swansea, Wales, were exposed for years to toxic chemicals found in firefighting foam—specifically PFOS and PFOA, members of the notorious PFAS family. These so-called "forever chemicals" are infamous for their persistence in the environment and their links to cancer and other severe health issues. Meanwhile, just days earlier, the Vermont Supreme Court handed down a landmark decision in Neddo v. Monsanto, opening the door for students and staff exposed to PCBs in Vermont schools to sue for lifetime medical monitoring, but only if their exposure continued past July 1, 2022.
Both cases reveal how chemical giants—3M and Monsanto (now owned by Bayer)—failed to protect the public, and how the consequences of their actions are still unfolding for thousands of families.
The Swansea 3M factory, once the company’s largest outside the U.S., opened in 1952 and employed more than 1,000 people from across South Wales. Workers there manufactured everything from nappy fastenings to video tape, but a select few, known as the "fire party," took on extra duties: fighting chemical fires using aqueous firefighting foam (AFFF). According to BBC File on 4 Investigates, these workers were never told that the foam contained PFOS and PFOA—chemicals that, as of 2024, the World Health Organization (WHO) has classified as carcinogenic or possibly carcinogenic to humans.
“We were on the emergency squad, like part-time firemen,” said Ian, a longtime worker whose name was changed for privacy. “Once a month we did the training and we used to train putting out chemical fires. They’d have a big tray full of chemicals, put a torch to it, set it up and then we used to use the light water then to put it out, it would come out like foam.” The technical term for that “light water” is AFFF, and the workers handled it with nothing more than factory overalls and wellies, unaware of the risks.
It wasn’t until decades later that the full extent of the contamination became clear. In 2023, as 3M prepared to close the Swansea site, a land contamination report surfaced, revealing PFOS levels in the soil up to 1,500 micrograms per kilogram—500 times higher than the British average. Dr. David Megson, an environmental scientist at Manchester Metropolitan University, told the BBC these levels are a “cause for concern,” especially since exposure above 600 micrograms can threaten human health through inhalation or skin contact.
The chemicals’ impact is not just environmental, but deeply personal. Cheryl, whose father worked at the factory and fought fires as part of the fire party, recounted how he developed kidney cancer in his 40s and died at 54. “It was a shock because my father was always a big, strong man, so he was never ill. He never used to take time off sick from work,” Cheryl told the BBC. While many factors can cause kidney cancer, WHO research suggests that significant PFOS and PFOA exposure probably increases the risk.
In a striking parallel, the Vermont Supreme Court’s December 12, 2025, decision tackled another group of persistent pollutants: PCBs. These synthetic chemicals, manufactured solely by Monsanto from 1935 to 1977, were used widely in construction materials like caulking and fluorescent light ballasts. Vermont’s Act 74, passed in 2021, mandated testing for PCBs in all schools built or renovated before 1980. The results, as reported by state environmental agencies, were sobering: 31% of tested schools exceeded Vermont’s strict “School Action Level” for PCBs, with 20 schools requiring immediate action and seven facing major cleanup.
PCBs are classified as probable human carcinogens and have been linked to reduced IQ in children, attention deficits, thyroid problems, and weakened immune systems. The chemicals accumulate in body fat and don’t break down easily, making them especially dangerous in schools where children spend years breathing contaminated air. Vermont’s standards for PCBs are among the toughest in the country—just 30 nanograms per cubic meter for pre-K students, rising to 100 for older students and adults.
Yet, a funding crisis has left some Vermont schools untested, and many students in legal limbo. The Supreme Court ruled that only those exposed after July 1, 2022, when Vermont’s medical monitoring law took effect, can join the class action seeking lifetime health surveillance paid for by Monsanto. Those who graduated or left before that date must pursue traditional personal injury lawsuits, which require proof of actual physical harm—a much higher bar.
The Vermont ruling also established a crucial precedent: Monsanto (and by extension, Bayer) cannot dodge liability by claiming it never “released” PCBs in Vermont because the chemicals were manufactured elsewhere. The justices ruled that selling a toxic substance that ultimately emits chemicals in Vermont classrooms constitutes a “release” in the state, regardless of where the original sale took place. This “supply-chain liability” could have far-reaching implications for other toxic chemical cases, including those involving PFAS.
Back in Swansea, 3M’s legacy of contamination came to a head in October 2006, when a storm caused leftover firefighting foam to spill from the factory into the local Afon Lliw waterway. Test results revealed PFOS concentrations in the river at 20 micrograms per liter—31,000 times higher than what’s considered safe for aquatic life. The company avoided prosecution, but the environmental and health consequences lingered. Even in 2023, the aeration pond on site contained PFOS at levels 21,000 times above recommended safety limits for aquatic life, though 3M has since completed remediation efforts.
Both 3M and Bayer have faced criticism for their handling of these crises. 3M insists that "the health and safety of our employees, their families, and our communities, are critical priorities," and says it has phased out PFOS and PFOA from its operations, investing $1 billion globally in water treatment. Bayer, meanwhile, often points out that Monsanto stopped making PCBs in 1977, before the federal ban. However, Vermont’s Attorney General claims internal documents show Monsanto knew of PCB toxicity for decades but kept selling the chemicals to maximize profits.
As the Neddo case returns to U.S. District Court and Vermont’s Attorney General pursues a separate lawsuit to recover the costs of statewide testing and remediation, the fight for accountability continues. For families like Cheryl’s in Wales and students in Vermont, the question remains: will justice and safety finally catch up to the chemical legacies left behind?
These cases are a stark reminder that the impacts of industrial innovation can last for generations, and that the pursuit of profit must never eclipse the duty to protect public health.
