Hazard NJ Podcast - First a Miracle, Then a Curse. Teflon at Dupont in far South Jersey

It was 1938 at a DuPont laboratory in far South Jersey when scientists stumbled upon the chemical that would become known as Teflon. The accidental discovery became a scientific miracle, laying the groundwork for an entirely new class of incredibly durable chemicals that would be used for all sorts of purposes. But that progress came with a toxic hidden cost that has only recently become fully understood. Now, the small town where it all started is on the front lines of a global pollution crisis.

Editor’s Note: “Hazard NJ” is an NJ Spotlight News podcast that examines serious pollution issues. Season 2 dives deep into the crisis of toxic pollution caused by PFAS, or “forever chemicals,” around New Jersey and beyond. Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and more.

Read the episode transcript below:

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
DEEP IN A LAB IN SOUTH JERSEY... A YOUNG CHEMIST AND HIS ASSISTANT WERE CONDUCTING RESEARCH.

IT WAS 1938. LATER THAT YEAR... SUPERMAN WOULD MAKE HIS FIRST APPEARANCE IN PRINT... AND ORSON WELLES WOULD CONVINCE PEOPLE THAT ALIENS HAD LANDED IN NEW JERSEY.

BUT ON APRIL 6... THE CHEMIST AND HIS ASSISTANT WEREN'T THINKING ABOUT SUPERHEROES OR MARTIAN INVASIONS.

THEIR PROBLEM WAS THAT THEIR EXPERIMENTS WITH A NEW GAS WEREN'T GOING ACCORDING TO PLAN.

THEY HAD OPENED THE VALVE OF ONE OF THE CANISTERS THAT STORED THE GAS... ONLY TO DISCOVER IT WAS... GONE. BUT THE CANISTER WAS TOO HEAVY TO BE EMPTY.

SO... THEY CUT OPEN THE CANISTER.

WHAT THEY FOUND WAS A WHITE POWDER THAT WOULD CHANGE THE WORLD IN UNIMAGINABLE WAYS.

THIS IS HAZARD NJ...

IN OUR FIRST SEASON... WE REPORTED ON TOXIC SUPERFUND SITES AROUND THE GARDEN STATE... AND HOW THEY'RE IMPACTED BY CLIMATE CHANGE.

THIS TIME AROUND WE'RE TAKING A LOOK AT A DIFFERENT TOXIC THREAT... PFAS.

THEY'RE OFTEN CALLED FOREVER CHEMICALS... AND THEY'RE IN OUR TOILET PAPER... OUR WATER... OUR AIR... AND EVEN OUR BLOOD.

I'M JORDAN GASS-POORÉ... AN INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALIST FROM TEXAS.

I PROMISED MICHAEL... THE SHOW'S PRODUCER... THAT I WOULDN'T TALK ABOUT TEXAS OR HORROR MOVIES... BUT I WOULD BE REMISS IF I DIDN'T MENTION THE 1973 CULT CLASSIC... THE CRAZIES.

THE MOVIE'S ABOUT A SMALL TOWN THAT ACCIDENTALLY HAS THEIR WATER SUPPLY INFECTED WITH A VIRUS THAT CAUSES THE TOWNSPEOPLE TO BECOME HOMICIDAL.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
AT LEAST IN THAT CASE... IT WAS PRETTY OBVIOUS WHO HAD CHUGGED A BIG GLASS OF CHEMICALS. WITH PFAS... THAT'S A LITTLE BIT HARDER.

OKAY... MICHAEL... I GOT THE FICTIONAL HORROR TALK OUT OF MY SYSTEM.

NOW, LET'S TALK ABOUT REAL HORROR.

THEY SAY NOTHING LASTS FOREVER... EXCEPT MAYBE DIAMONDS... AND PFAS. SO... WHAT ARE PFAS?

WELL... PFAS IS SHORT FOR... BEAR WITH ME... PER AND POLYFLUOROALKYL SUBSTANCES. THEY'RE A CLASS OF THOUSANDS OF CHEMICALS THAT HAVE BEEN LINKED TO NUMEROUS HEALTH RISKS.

Tasha Stoiber --- Senior Scientist, Environmental Working Group
There are hundreds of studies that have documented the numerous different health effects that exposure to these chemicals are associated with.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
THAT'S TASHA STOIBER. SHE'S A SENIOR SCIENTIST WITH THE ENVIRONMENTAL WORKING GROUP. THEY'RE A NON-PROFIT THAT CONDUCTS RESEARCH ON PFAS AND OTHER TOXIC SUBSTANCES... AND ADVOCATES FOR STRICTER REGULATION.

STOIBER LISTED SOME OF THE POTENTIAL SIDE EFFECTS OF BEING EXPOSED TO PFAS.

Tasha Stoiber --- Senior Scientist, Environmental Working Group
There was a study that came out that showed that higher levels of PFAS in your blood was associated with lower rates of fertility, you know, numerous studies that have linked them to different types of cancers: kidney cancer, liver cancer. Numerous studies that have shown that the immune system is very sensitive to these chemicals; it can reduce your resistance to disease, it can reduce your response to vaccines, and also, it's an endocrine disruptor. And so the list goes on.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
WE'RE GOING TO TALK A LOT MORE ABOUT HEALTH RISKS LATER THIS SEASON... BUT FOR NOW IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE... JUST BECAUSE NEARLY EVERYONE ON THE PLANET LIKELY HAS PFAS IN THEIR BODY DOESN'T MEAN THEY'LL DEVELOP ANY OF THESE CONDITIONS.

PFAS ARE CALLED FOREVER CHEMICALS BECAUSE THEY BREAK DOWN VERY SLOWLY... IF EVER. THEY CAN BUILD UP IN OUR BODIES OVER TIME... AND CAN EVEN BE FOUND IN ANIMALS... CROPS... SHOOT... THEY'RE EVEN PRESENT IN THE AIR AND WATER.

BUT WHERE DID THE CHEMICALS COME FROM? WELL... BACK TO THAT LAB FROM THE TOP OF THE EPISODE. THE ONE IN NEW JERSEY. IT SOUNDS LIKE THE START OF A GOTHIC HORROR NOVEL.

ROY J. PLUNKETT WAS A 27- YEAR-OLD CHEMIST FROM OHIO.

HE WORKED AT DUPONT'S CHAMBERS WORKS PLANT IN DEEPWATER NEW JERSEY. IT WAS A DREAM JOB FOR A POOR FARM BOY... AND GOOD PAY.

THE VIEWS OF THE DELAWARE RIVER PROBABLY DIDN'T HURT EITHER.

PLUNKETT HADN'T BEEN AT THE PLANT FOR LONG WHEN HE OPENED UP ONE OF THE CANISTERS HE'D FILLED WITH DIFFERENT COMPOUNDS OF THE COLORLESS... AND ODORLESS GAS... TETRAFLUOROETHYLENE... OR TFE. HE WAS TRYING TO DEVELOP A DUPONT VERSION OF FREON.

INSIDE THAT CANISTER HE FOUND A WHITE POWDER THAT WAS SLIGHTLY GREASY TO THE TOUCH.

HE WAS CURIOUS ABOUT THE SUBSTANCE.

SO... HE RUBBED THE POWDER BETWEEN HIS FINGERS. HE SNIFFED IT... AND TASTED IT.

HE AND HIS ASSISTANT... JACK REBOK... A PAULSBORO NATIVE... DISCOVERED THE SUBSTANCE WAS SLIPPERY... LIKE TWO WET ICE CUBES SLIDING AGAINST EACH OTHER.

IT WAS STICKY AND... UNDER THE RIGHT CIRCUMSTANCES... COULD BE MOLDED INTO VARIOUS SHAPES. AFTER FURTHER TESTING THEY DISCOVERED IT DIDN'T BREAK DOWN WHEN EXPOSED TO HEAT... ELECTRICITY... AND MOST SOLVENTS.

TURNS OUT... THAT WHITE POWDER WAS POLYTETRAFLUOROETHYLENE... PTFE FOR SHORT... WHICH DUPONT EVENTUALLY DUBBED TEFLON. IT WAS A FOUNDING FATHER OF THE PFAS FAMILY.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
TEFLON ORIGINALLY DIDN'T MAKE WAVES AT DUPONT. IT WAS EXPENSIVE TO MAKE... AND PEOPLE AT THE TIME WERE TOO ENAMORED WITH NYLON.

THEN CAME WORLD WAR TWO. AND THE MANHATTAN PROJECT... YES... THE PEOPLE WHO RACED TO PRODUCE THE WORLD'S FIRST NUCLEAR WEAPONS.

PLUNKETT RECALLS THE SUDDEN ATTENTION TEFLON GOT...

Roy Plunkett --- Former Chemist, DuPont. 1986 Oral History Interview
When DuPont reviewed with some of the Manhattan Project people, particularly General Groves, who was director of the Manhattan Project, he said he heard about this new plastic material. He said that sounds like something we're going to need, and he said, "You guys better get a whole lot in the development or we're going to take it away from you."

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
SO... DUPONT QUICKLY RAMPED UP PRODUCTION OF TEFLON. SCIENTISTS WITH THE MANHATTAN PROJECT WERE INTERESTED IN THE PRODUCT BECAUSE THEY FOUND IT WAS THE ONLY COATING THAT COULD STAND UP TO THE INTENSE SUBSTANCES AND PROCESSES THAT ARE USED TO ENRICH PLUTONIUM AND URANIUM... THE KEY MATERIALS USED FOR THE FIRST NUCLEAR BOMBS.

DUPONT PRODUCED THE WHITE POWDER SECRETLY DURING THE WAR. THE PUBLIC DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT TEFLON UNTIL 1946.

A FEW YEARS AFTER THAT... PLUNKETT WAS OFFICIALLY RECOGNIZED FOR HIS INVENTION. HE WAS GIVEN AN AWARD FOR IMPROVING THE "COMFORT... WELFARE... AND HAPPINESS OF HUMANKIND."

I'LL LET HIM TELL YOU THE STORY.

Roy Plunkett --- Former Chemist, DuPont. 1986 Oral History Interview
I was awarded the John Scott Medal by the City of Philadelphia. That was in '51, but I didn't receive it until June of '52, at which DuPont had set up a banquet, and had a couple hundred people come to a banquet at a country club in Penns Grove, New Jersey. And it was the first time that anybody in this country saw any cooking utensils lined with Teflon. Because what they did was to make up muffin tins lined with Teflon and gave them out as favors to all attendees to this banquet.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
THEN... ON DECEMBER FIFTEENTH 1960... DUPONT RELEASED THE FIRST TEFLON COATED POTS AND PANS AT MACY'S IN NEW YORK CITY.

AND GET THIS... THEY ONLY COST $6.94... AND SOLD OUT QUICKLY.

THEY WERE EVERY HOUSEWIFE'S DREAM.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
UNTIL PEOPLE FOUND OUT THAT TEFLON COULD BE SCRUBBED OFF A STEEL PAN. SO... DUPONT IMPROVED THE BONDING... AND MADE MY NANA A LOT HAPPIER.

AT THIS POINT IN TIME... PLUNKETT WAS OFF TEFLON. HE HAD SPENT A SHORT STINT AS THE ASSISTANT MANAGER OF CHAMBERS WORKS... THEN EVENTUALLY FOUND HIS WAY TO MY HOME STATE OF TEXAS TO OPEN UP A NEW DUPONT PLANT.

Roy Plunkett --- Former Chemist, DuPont. 1986 Oral History Interview
I'm proud of my part in this development. I'm proud of the company with whom I worked. I'm proud of what has happened and most of all, I'm proud with all the benefit to mankind from this incredible invention. The discovery of PTFE has been variously described as an example of serendipity, a lucky accident, a flash of genius. Perhaps all three were involved.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
IT'S BEEN NEARLY A CENTURY SINCE PLUNKETT AND REBOK ACCIDENTALLY DISCOVERED TEFLON. AND NOW WE'RE STUCK GRAPPLING WITH THE UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES OF THAT "FLASH OF GENIUS."

TURNS OUT... PFAS... LIKE THE CHEMICALS USED TO MAKE TEFLON... HAVE BEEN FOUND IN DRINKING WATER SOURCES THROUGHOUT NEW JERSEY... AND AROUND THE COUNTRY... FOR DECADES.

THE EPA WARNED LAST YEAR THAT EVEN A SMALL AMOUNT OF PFAS FOUND IN DRINKING WATER COULD BE DANGEROUS TO HUMAN HEALTH.

PFAS ARE REALLY GOOD AT REPELLING WATER... OIL... AND GREASE... SO THEY'RE ADDED TO A VARIETY OF PRODUCTS. THE PROBLEM IS...

Graham Peaslee --- Professor Emeritus, Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Notre Dame
The EPA is introducing a PFAS regulation in water, the first new regulation that they've introduced in 23 years. Tells you how long it takes to regulate something. And they are doing it because it's such a toxic and persistent chemical.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
THAT'S GRAHAM PEASLEE. HE MAY BE A PROFESSOR OF PHYSICS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME... BUT HE GOT HIS START IN SCIENCE IN NEW JERSEY... AS A STUDENT AT PRINCETON.

THESE DAYS... PEASLEE AND HIS STUDENTS HUNT FOR PFAS IN ALL SORTS OF EVERYDAY PRODUCTS... FROM FAST FOOD WRAPPERS TO SCHOOL UNIFORMS TO FACE MASKS.

Graham Peaslee --- Professor Emeritus, Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Notre Dame
I bet you'll find it hard to find a product we haven't put in the beam so far.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
IT'S HARD TO ESCAPE FOREVER CHEMICALS... BUT PEASLEE IS TRYING TO HELP FIND A WAY. HE WANTS TO GET RID OF PFAS FROM NON-ESSENTIAL USES... LIKE FAST FOOD PACKAGING.

PFAS IS USED IN THIS KIND OF PACKAGING TO MAKE PRODUCTS WATERPROOF AND RESISTANT TO GREASE AND STAINS.

PEASLEE AND HIS TEAM USED A PARTICLE INDUCED GAMMA RAY EMISSION TO TEST FOR FLUORINE IN HUNDREDS OF FAST FOOD WRAPPERS FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY.

OF THE ROUGHLY 400 FAST FOOD CONTACT PAPERS... PAPERBOARD CONTAINERS... AND CUPS SAMPLED... NEARLY HALF OF THE PAPER... AND 20% OF THE PAPERBOARD PRODUCTS CONTAINED PFAS.

THAT'S ALARMING ON ITS OWN... BUT PEASLEE IS MOST CONCERNED ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS TO FAST FOOD WRAPPERS ONCE THEY'RE THROWN IN THE TRASH.

Graham Peaslee --- Professor Emeritus, Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Notre Dame
100% of those chemicals on the food wrappers will come off in 60 days in a aerobic landfill, which means it gets into drinking water passes right through the treatment centers.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
THE FDA ANNOUNCED IN FEBRUARY THAT FAST FOOD WRAPPERS AND OTHER FOOD PACKAGING MADE WITH PFAS ARE NO LONGER BEING SOLD IN THE US.

THE NEWS COMES MORE THAN THREE YEARS AFTER THE AGENCY REACHED AN AGREEMENT WITH MANUFACTURERS FOR A VOLUNTARY PHASE OUT.

BUT IT WILL TAKE TIME FOR FOOD WRAPPERS WITH PFAS TO FULLY COME OUT OF SERVICE... SO, YOU KNOW, BE AWARE... THEY ARE STILL OUT THERE.

STOIBER... THE SCIENTIST WITH THE ENVIRONMENTAL WORKING GROUP... SAYS THE FEDS SHOULD GO FARTHER BECAUSE...

Tasha Stoiber --- Senior Scientist, Environmental Working Group
You know, one can't shop their way out of exposures. And exposures are going to be different for everyone.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
12 STATES HAVE ALREADY BANNED OR PHASED OUT PFAS IN ALL FOOD PACKAGING. NEW JERSEY IS NOT ONE OF THOSE STATES... THOUGH A BILL TO CREATE SUCH A BAN WAS PUT FORWARD BY LAWMAKERS IN TRENTON IN 2022... BUT SO FAR IT HASN'T EVEN GOTTEN A HEARING.

USE OF PFAS HAS BEEN SO WIDESPREAD... FOR SO LONG... THAT NEARLY EVERY PERSON ON THE PLANET ALIVE TODAY HAS DETECTABLE LEVELS OF THESE CHEMICALS IN THEIR BLOOD. I REPEAT... NEARLY EVERY PERSON ON THE PLANET ALIVE TODAY HAS PFAS IN THEIR BLOOD.

Graham Peaslee --- Professor Emeritus, Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Notre Dame
We're finding PFAS, every blood sample, every blood bank. In fact, you have to go back to the Korean War to find blood that didn't have it. There's no blood left in North America that doesn't have PFAS in it, from cord blood to adult blood, to anywhere.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
NOW... TRY NOT TO FREAK OUT. MOST PEOPLE WON'T EXPERIENCE ANY HEALTH PROBLEMS OR FEEL ANY SYMPTOMS. BUT WE SHOULD... AND CAN... LIMIT OUR EXPOSURE.

WHICH IS WHERE AGENCIES LIKE THE NEW JERSEY DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION COME IN.

IN 2018... NEW JERSEY BECAME THE FIRST US STATE TO ESTABLISH AN ENFORCEABLE DRINKING WATER STANDARD FOR A PFAS CHEMICAL.

BUT LIKE WE SAID BEFORE... THERE'S THOUSANDS OF CHEMICALS IN THE PFAS FAMILY. AND NEW JERSEY DEP ORIGINALLY ONLY FOCUSED ON THREE IN THE STATE'S DRINKING WATER.

THAT NUMBER ROSE TO SIX THIS SPRING AFTER THE EPA FINALIZED ITS MUCH STRICTER HEALTH LIMITS ON PFAS IN DRINKING WATER.

FOR SOME PEOPLE... DRINKING WATER IS HOW THEY'RE EXPOSED TO PFAS. OTHERS... IT'S THE FOOD THEY EAT. AND NOT JUST FROM THE WRAPPERS.

A PERSON WHO CATCHES A FISH IN A PFAS CONTAMINATED RIVER AND THEN GRILLS IT FOR DINNER CAN BE EXPOSED. RIVERS AND OTHER BODIES OF WATER CAN BECOME POLLUTED WITH FOREVER CHEMICALS THROUGH THE RUNOFF FROM INDUSTRIAL FACILITIES... FIREFIGHTING FOAM... AND LANDFILLS.

AND STOIBER SAYS PFAS BUILDS UP IN OUR BODIES OVER TIME.

Tasha Stoiber --- Senior Scientist, Environmental Working Group
Instead of building up on our fat, they tend to stick to proteins in our body. They tend to build up in protein rich areas in the body. They stick to organs in our body. And they can stick to blood and essentially travel around our body.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
SO... DRINKING WATER REGULATIONS ARE A GOOD START... BUT THAT'S REALLY JUST THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG.

Bonnie Smalley --- Former Pennsville Resident
I have this mutation in my PPOX gene, P-Pox, which inhibits the way the heme in my blood is made. So I can't be in the sun.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
BONNIE SMALLEY HAS BEEN DIAGNOSED WITH VARIEGATE PORPHYRIA... A RARE SKIN DISEASE... AND HAS EXPERIENCED SEVERE DENTAL PROBLEMS.

ALL OF THIS SHE BELIEVES TO BE THE RESULT OF EXPOSURE TO DRINKING WATER CONTAMINATED WITH PFAS... AND OTHER POLLUTION FROM CHAMBERS WORKS.

Bonnie Smalley --- Former Pennsville Resident
So I've lived my entire life with a disorder that is not in my family. That nobody picked up. That I only picked up because I did a DNA test.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
BONNIE GREW UP IN PENNSVILLE NEW JERSEY... A SMALL TOWN ON THE DELAWARE RIVER.

SHE'D LIKE FOR THE STATE... OR REALLY ANYONE... TO TEST THE BLOOD OF SALEM COUNTY RESIDENTS FOR PFAS... BUT NO TESTING HAS BEEN DONE.

Bonnie Smalley --- Former Pennsville Resident
I just keep running into brick walls. It would be nice if the state helped. I would love for the state to help because we've been ignored for very, very long and it's... people are dying. That's what it comes down to. People are dying and they're very sick.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
THE STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT ACKNOWLEDGED THAT IT HAS NOT DONE ANY STUDIES OF PFAS IMPACTS IN SALEM COUNTY SPECIFICALLY... BUT THE DEPARTMENT IS CURRENTLY CONDUCTING A STATEWIDE STUDY OF 500 NEW JERSEYANS TO MONITOR THEIR EXPOSURE TO PFAS AND OTHER CHEMICALS.

TO BE CLEAR THOUGH... NO SALEM COUNTY RESIDENT IS A PART OF THAT EFFORT.

DATA FROM THE STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT SHOWS THAT CANCER RATES IN SALEM COUNTY ARE HIGHER THAN RATES STATEWIDE... THOUGH IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT ATTRIBUTING CANCER TO A SINGLE CAUSE IS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE.

BONNIE'S FAMILY GOES BACK GENERATIONS IN PENNSVILLE.

Bonnie Smalley --- Former Pennsville Resident
My Uncle Ken designed the town seal for the Township of Pennsville. And there is a chemical beaker in it, in our town seal.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
JUST UP THE ROAD FROM HER CHILDHOOD HOME IS THE PLACE WHERE PLUNKETT AND HIS ASSISTANT DISCOVERED ONE OF THE FIRST PFAS CHEMICALS WHILE WORKING AT DUPONT'S CHAMBERS WORKS PLANT.

CHAMBERS WORKS HAS A STORIED PLACE IN THE HISTORY OF AMERICA'S CHEMICAL INDUSTRY. DUPONT BEGAN USING THE FACILITY IN 1892 TO MAKE GUNPOWDER.

BY THE 1920S... THE COMPANY HAD BEGUN MAKING DYES AND REFRIGERANTS AT THE SITE. THROUGHOUT ITS HISTORY... CHAMBERS WORKS HAS BEEN HOME TO ALL SORTS OF CHEMICAL PRODUCTION.

HISTORIAN LUCAS CLAWSON... WHO WORKS AT THE HAGLEY MUSEUM IN DELAWARE AND STUDIES THE HISTORY OF DUPONT... DESCRIBED THE OPERATION AS AN ECONOMIC POWERHOUSE FOR THE REGION.

Lucas Clawson --- Hagley Historian, Hagley Museum and Library
There were thousands of people employed there at one point, and that's everybody from people in administration, people that worked in the research facilities, people in powder production, down to, like, teamsters, your stevedores, the shipping for all the maritime stuff that came and went because they had their own port, essentially, at the Deepwater facility. So, you've got thousands of people who are employed directly or indirectly in Salem County as a result of this facility.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
DUPONT EVENTUALLY MOVED ITS TEFLON MANUFACTURING TO THE COMPANY'S ARLINGTON FACILITY IN NORTH JERSEY... AND THEN TO ITS WASHINGTON WORKS PLANT IN WEST VIRGINIA.

IT WAS IN WEST VIRGINIA WHERE WIDESPREAD POLLUTION FROM THE WORK EVENTUALLY BECAME THE GROUNDS FOR A LANDMARK SETTLEMENT IN 2017.

DUPONT AGREED TO PAY MORE THAN $670 MILLION TO MORE THAN 3,500 AFFECTED PLAINTIFFS.

THE 2019 MOVIE "DARK WATERS" IS BASED ON THE WEST VIRGINIA CASE.

BUT EVEN AFTER DUPONT MOVED TEFLON PRODUCTION ELSEWHERE... THE COMPANY MADE SURE PFAS REMAINED IN SALEM COUNTY.

DUPONT IMPORTED THE CHEMICAL PERFLUOROOCTANOIC ACID... OR SIMPLY PFOA... AND OTHER PFAS TO CHAMBERS WORKS FOR DECADES... STARTING IN THE 1950S. THE CHEMICALS WERE USED TO MANUFACTURE TEFLON AND OTHER PRODUCTS AT THE SITE.

MEANWHILE... CHAMBERS WORKS BECAME A LARGE WASTE HANDLING SITE... WITH MASSIVE LANDFILLS AND A WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT MEANT TO DEAL WITH HAZARDOUS MATERIALS.

PFAS-LADEN WASTE FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY... INCLUDING FROM THE INFAMOUS WEST VIRGINIA PLANT... WAS SHIPPED TO SALEM COUNTY.

LOCALS... LIKE BONNIE'S DAD... HAULED THAT WASTE TO THE PLANT.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
I WENT WITH BONNIE AND HER MOM ON A DRIVING TOUR OF THE PATCHWORK OF SMALL TOWNS IN SALEM COUNTY THAT SURROUND THE CHAMBERS WORKS SITE.

Bonnie Smalley --- Former Pennsville Resident
This is what most people know as Pennsville because they're just passing through. [Mom] Because you've got 95. You've got the Turnpike, it's heading to the Delaware Bridge.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
BONNIE... 39... HAS DONE HER HOMEWORK. SHE STAYS ON TOP OF ALL THINGS CHAMBERS WORKS... AND RUNS THE W-T-F DUPONT FACEBOOK PAGE.

AS WE DROVE AROUND... BONNIE AND HER MOM POINTED OUT THE YMCA... COUNTRY CLUB... ELEMENTARY SCHOOL... PARK... AND NEIGHBORHOODS THAT MADE UP DUPONT'S COMPANY TOWN.

THERE'S ALPHABET CITY... WHERE THE STREETS ARE NAMED AFTER... YOU GUESSED IT... LETTERS OF THE ALPHABET. A... B... C... D... EACH LINED WITH IDENTICAL... ONE STORY HOMES.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
PEOPLE STILL LIVE IN THESE HOMES... WHETHER OR NOT THEY KNOW THE AREA'S HISTORY.

AND IT'S HARD TO REMEMBER WHAT LIFE WAS LIKE WHEN CHAMBERS WORKS WAS WHERE MOST PEOPLE WORKED.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
MANY OF THE PEOPLE WHO WORKED THERE... WHOSE LOYALTY TO DUPONT WENT UNQUESTIONED... ARE GONE.

DUPONT STOPPED PRODUCING EXPLOSIVES AND DYES AT THE SITE BY THE EARLY 1980S. BUT THE CHEMICAL PRODUCTION REMAINED... EVEN AFTER DUPONT GAVE UP CHAMBERS WORKS IN THE 2015 CORPORATE SPIN OFF THAT CREATED A NEW COMPANY... CHEMOURS.

TODAY... CHEMOURS CONTINUES THAT WORK... AND CONTINUES USING PFAS AS PART OF IT. THE COMPANY SPECIFICALLY USES GEN X CHEMICALS... WHICH DUPONT INTRODUCED AS A SUBSTITUTE FOR PFOA MORE THAN A DECADE AGO.

THE GEN X CHEMICALS ARE INTENDED TO BE LESS DANGEROUS TO HUMAN HEALTH AND THE ENVIRONMENT... BUT MUCH IS STILL UNKNOWN ABOUT THE HEALTH EFFECTS OF GEN X CHEMICALS... THOUGH, MANY EXPERTS EXPECT THEY WILL BE SIMILAR TO OTHER PFAS LIKE PFOA.

THESE DAYS... MUCH OF THE ORIGINAL CHAMBERS WORKS PLANT IS GONE. AND WHAT'S LEFT OF THE ROUGHLY TWO SQUARE MILE AREA IS MOSTLY ABANDONED.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
WE DID SEE PEOPLE CHECKING THE MONITORING WELLS THAT SURROUND THE PLANT... BUT THERE WAS NO LONGER THE HUSTLE AND BUSTLE THAT ONCE WAS.

CHEMOURS IS ALSO MONITORING OFF SITE DRINKING WATER WELLS FOR PFAS CONTAMINATION. THE COMPANY HAS PLEDGED TO PROVIDE BOTTLED WATER TO HOUSEHOLDS WITH TAINTED WELLS UNTIL THE COMPANY IS ABLE TO EITHER CONNECT HOMES TO A LOCAL WATER SYSTEM... OR INSTALL A FILTER ON THE WELL THAT IS ABLE TO HANDLE PFAS.

IT'S A PROGRAM THAT DUPONT STARTED IN 2009... AND CHEMOURS CONTINUES TODAY.

AS OF APRIL... 229 FILTERS HAVE BEEN INSTALLED AT HOMES IN FOUR TOWNS... INCLUDING PENNSVILLE.

PENNSVILLE AND CARNEYS POINT AREN'T THE COMPANY TOWNS THEY USED TO BE.

BONNIE'S GRANDFATHER WORKED AT CHAMBERS WORKS... HER DAD WORKED AT CHAMBERS WORKS.

IT TOOK THREE GENERATIONS OF A GOOD, REGULAR PAYCHECK FOR PEOPLE TO REALIZE THE PRICE THEY PAID FOR MORE THAN A CENTURY OF DOING DUPONT'S BIDDING.

THEY'RE NOW FIGHTING BACK.

IN 2016... CARNEYS POINT BROUGHT A LAWSUIT AGAINST DUPONT AND CHEMOURS. RESIDENTS ARE HOLDING THE COMPANIES RESPONSIBLE FOR DUMPING ONE HUNDRED MILLION POUNDS OF CHEMICAL WASTE INTO THE AREA'S SOIL AND WATER OVER THE PLANT'S HISTORY.

Al Telsey --- Partner, Meyner and Landis LLP
"We've been drinking it, we're sick, you need to do something about it." That's a story that's being replicated throughout the United States and around the world to the point where a company like DuPont and Chemours has been sued 1,000 times with lawsuits coming in every day.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
THAT'S AL TELSEY. HE'S LEADING CARNEYS POINT IN A BILLION DOLLAR LAWSUIT AGAINST DUPONT.

TELSEY GREW UP IN SALEM COUNTY. WE MET HIM AT THE BLUE BIRD DINER IN PENNSVILLE TO TALK ABOUT THE CASE.

Al Telsey --- Partner, Meyner and Landis LLP
So, now we are just one of many people clamoring for justice. You know, the company town mentality is a thing of the past. It's in the chapter of the history book that just isn't the present.

BASICALLY... HE ARGUES THAT IN THE PROCESS OF DUPONT SPINNING OFF CHEMOURS... THE TWO COMPANIES REPEATEDLY BROKE STATE LAW BY FAILING TO EITHER CLEAN UP CHAMBERS WORKS OR SET ASIDE ENOUGH MONEY FOR STATE AND LOCAL AUTHORITIES TO DO THE CLEAN UP THEMSELVES. THAT LAWSUIT REMAINS ON GOING... MORE THAN SIX YEARS AFTER IT WAS FILED.

AND IT'S NOT JUST CARNEY'S POINT THAT WANTS POLLUTERS TO PAY UP. THE STATE SUED DUPONT AND CHEMOURS IN 2019 FOR NATURAL RESOURCE DAMAGES CAUSED BY THE COMPANIES' ACTIONS AT CHAMBERS WORKS. THAT CASE ALSO REMAINS ONGOING.

FOR NOW... LIFE GOES ON IN SALEM COUNTY. CHEMOURS HAS A BILLBOARD UP ON THE NORTH SIDE OF THE NEW JERSEY END OF THE DELAWARE MEMORIAL BRIDGE... TO CATCH THE EYE OF ANY DRIVER WHO MIGHT HAVE BEEN GAZING AT THE CHAMBERS WORK PLANT BELOW. IN JANUARY IT READ...

Bonnie Smalley --- Former Pennsville Resident
Chemours makes the world work.

Jordan Gass-Pooré -- Host
PFAS... THEY'RE THE CHEMICALS FOUND IN NEARLY EVERYONE.

WHAT WAS ONCE CONSIDERED A HOUSEWIFE'S BEST FRIEND HAS TURNED INTO PUBLIC ENEMY NUMBER ONE. AND FOR GOOD REASON.

THIS SEASON OF HAZARD NJ... WE'RE SERVING UP THE TOXIC TRUTH ABOUT PFAS IN NEW JERSEY'S WATER... ONE GLASS AT A TIME.

ON EPISODE TWO... WE LOOK AT HOW PFAS ARE FUELING A PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS.

HAZARD NJ IS AN NJ SPOTLIGHT NEWS PRODUCTION... YOU CAN SUPPORT OUR REPORTING BY HEADING TO NJSPOTLIGHTNEWS.ORG/DONATE