Chemical company 3M reluctantly acknowledges air emissions of PFOS | the interior

After the first round of questions apparently not very satisfactory to the members of Parliament, which, in their view, many questions remained unanswered by a large delegation from 3M, a question from N-VA member Quinn Daniels brought life to the factory beer

Former 3M Environmental Coordinator Gunther Hiel confirmed that PFOA and PFOS were airborne from the 3M site until 1996. “Before we had a thermo-oxidation unit, there were emissions,” he said. “Zero does not exist. There is always a fraction left.”

What followed was a rather strange sight. As with 3M’s first visit to the inquiry in September, no one else appears inclined to confirm the airborne emissions. Following the urging of Vice President Tetters, while confirming it had not been notified in September, 3M is already responsible for the pollution “including through the air.”

Subsequently, EHS Director Christoph Verstreten stated that OVAM, Vito and VMM were also informed of PFOA and PFOS emissions in 2001. The 3M delegation was then urgently asked to provide documents that could prove this connection.