Last month, a federal judge approved a $400,000 consent decree between Mount Vernon Mills, the Town of Trion, and the City of Summerville, addressing claims of PFAS contamination in Summerville’s water supply. While a localized resolution, the agreement casts a national spotlight on the textile industry’s growing financial responsibility for decades of discharging “forever chemicals” into the environment.
The settlement, finalized on September 25, brings to a close allegations that wastewater from Mount Vernon’s textile mill was a major source of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that infiltrated Summerville’s drinking water system. This is not the only payout linked to the broader class-action lawsuit; in June 2025, chemical producer Huntsman International agreed to pay $750,000, while Mount Vernon and Trion contributed $500,000 in a separate deal.
These settlements in rural Georgia are increasingly being seen as harbingers of a far larger, nationwide reckoning. The textile industry, historically a significant user of PFAS for water and stain resistance in fabrics, is now squarely in the crosshairs of environmental regulators and a burgeoning wave of new lawsuits.
Widespread Contamination and Looming Litigation
The scale of the problem is immense. A 2025 study from North Carolina State University estimates that as many as 49,000 facilities across the U.S. may be actively releasing PFAS. The textile industry has been identified as a key sector that historically discharged PFAS-laden wastewater, often without adequate treatment or understanding of the long-term environmental and health consequences.
Fueling the surge in legal action is the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) intensified regulation of PFAS. This regulatory shift empowers the agency to hold manufacturers and other industrial entities responsible for the substantial costs of cleanup. Thousands of PFAS-related lawsuits have already been filed in federal courts, reflecting a growing push for accountability.
Precedent for “Historic” Liability
The path to significant corporate liability has already been paved by previous cases, most notably an $850 million settlement by 3M over PFAS contamination in Minnesota’s drinking water. Legal experts are now predicting that PFAS lawsuits could evolve into one of the most extensive and costly corporate liability battles in U.S. history, potentially impacting companies throughout the entire supply chain, from chemical manufacturers to product producers and wastewater treatment facilities.
The Summerville settlement, though modest in comparison to what may lie ahead, serves as a stark reminder that the era of unregulated PFAS discharge is drawing to a close. For the textile industry and indeed, a multitude of other sectors, the financial and reputational costs of “forever chemicals” are only just beginning to unfold, promising a protracted and expensive fight for corporate responsibility nationwide.
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