Wednesday, April 1, 2026
-David Crowder, WRGA News-
Water expert Bob Bowcock takes a sample for testing from the Oostanaula River in Downtown Rome on Tuesday
Litigation is continuing in Northwest Georgia on behalf of landowners regarding PFAS contamination, with claims seeking punitive damages and alleging negligence, negligence per se, negligent failure to warn, and public nuisance.
PFAS Georgia also currently represents over 1,100 landowners, and they are expanding the testing of water, soil, and house dust to Rome and Floyd County.
Potential clients are those with an acre or more of land, business owners, farmers, recreational land users, and individuals impacted by the toxic “forever chemicals.”
If you fit into one of these categories, you can visit pfasgeorgia.com, and a member of the team will contact you to schedule a visit to your property to test for PFAS.
A team member will then walk you through the results and go over what your options are.
In 2024, the City of Rome settled a lawsuit against chemical companies, carpet manufacturers, and others regarding PFAS contamination in the Oostanaula River.
The money is being used to build a new reverse osmosis water treatment facility to remove the chemicals from the drinking water.
PFAS Georgia Attorney Ben Finley said that Rome was ahead of the curve.
“Rome was smart because they have a lawyer named Dandy Davis, who is a friend of ours,” he said. “Andy advanced that case, and he got a recovery for Rome unlike any other seen in the State of Georgia because of his legal acumen and what he did advancing that case.”
Finley said that Rome was smart to opt out of a $12 billion class action suit in South Carolina because the settlements the plaintiffs in that case received were far less than the $250 million settlement that Rome got.
PFAS Georgia has filed suit on behalf of other counties and municipalities, including Gordon County.
The chemicals in question were made by 3M, DuPont, and Daikin for products like “Scotchgard, “Stainmaster,” and “Teflon” that were used by carpet makers.
The suit contends that the chemical byproducts, including toxic sludge, liquid waste, and solid waste, were dumped in the Gordon County Landfill.
The suits seek to recover the cost of cleaning up and properly disposing of toxic materials.
“We have filed actions on behalf of these cities and counties for their landfill, wastewater treatment facilities, and other things, so that it does not ultimately fall back on the taxpayer,” said Attorney Nick Jackson during a town hall meeting at the Forum in Rome on Tuesday.
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