Chemours will pay $450 million to settle federal and state charges over its production of “forever chemicals,” harmful substances found in a range of products.

The settlement is the first to resolve federal enforcement claims against a company that manufactures polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) chemicals. Wilmington, Delaware-based Chemours, a spinoff of DuPont, makes PFAS for industrial and military applications.

“This first comprehensive federal settlement against a major PFAS manufacturer delivers on the Trump Administration’s promise to make polluters pay and stop PFAS contamination at the source,” Jeffrey A. Hall, assistant administrator for the EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, said in a statement. “By appropriately employing the full suite of existing legal authorities, we can greatly reduce PFAS contamination of water, land and air and even begin to mitigate past harm.”

Exposure to PFAS has been linked to serious health conditions, including cancer, liver and kidney damage, developmental problems and immune system disorders. Such chemicals, which resist heat, water, oil and grease, are used to produce everyday items, including nonstick pots and pans.

Under the multi-state agreement, Chemours will pay a civil penalty of $22.5 million for alleged violations and spend $90 million over 15 years to mitigate PFAS discharges in New Jersey, North Carolina and West Virginia.

Chemours also agreed to implement controls to prevent PFAS releases at its West Virginia facility and to provide clean drinking water to communities near its sites in the state and in New Jersey, efforts that will cost an estimated $280 million. Depending on the findings of an independent analysis, the company will install controls to mitigate PFAS and other chemical releases at a North Carolina facility.

The agreement will allow Chemours to continue producing PFAS for commercial and military uses. 

In a statement, the company said the settlement recognizes that it has already started taking steps at its plants to halt PFAS emissions.

Settlement draws fire

In 2025, a federal judge ordered Chemours to stop discharging illegal levels of toxic chemicals, including PFAS, into the Ohio River from the company’s Washington Works plant in West Virginia.

DuPont, Chemours and another company, Corteva, agreed last year to pay New Jersey up to $2 billion to settle environmental claims stemming from PFAS. The federal settlement does not affect the state case.

The U.S. and states alleged that three Chemours plants released PFAS into the Ohio River, Cape Fear River and Delaware River, violating the Clean Water Act and local rules. The violations continued for over a decade, according to the Justice Department.

North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson criticized the settlement, saying it does little to ensure the drinking water in affected communities is safe. “This deal is an insult to the people of eastern North Carolina,” he said in a statement. 

“Our state is ground zero for GenX contamination, but this deal does practically nothing to clean up our water,” Jackson added, referring to a synthetic PFAS compound that the state has found in the Cape Fear River. “Chemours made this mess, and Chemours should clean it up. The EPA will be hearing from my office.”

Chemours produces GenX at its facility in Fayetteville, North Carolina, according to state environmental and public health investigators. 

North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein also blasted the settlement. “This EPA, which has already weakened protections against chemicals like GenX, is now allowing polluters to pick and choose how and where they’ll fix their contamination — leaving North Carolina with no guarantees,” he said in a statement.