(3/2022) Following recommendations from the City’s attorney Jay Gullo, at its February 14th meeting, the Taneytown City Council approved a legal service agreement with the law offices of Barron and Bud to join a class action lawsuit involving chemicals known as perfluoroalkyl substances (PFA) found in manufactured products, such as firefighting foam.
Elements of PFA have been discovered leached into the groundwater, City Attorney Jay Gullo said. "These substances were placed in these materials by the manufacturers, and they knew at the time they were forever chemicals," he said.
The suit has been around since 2020 and many municipalities have gotten involved. "The good news is we’re not the worst in the state," he said. "It is an existing condition that has existed for some time, we’re just getting aware of the situation," he said.
Taneytown has had a successful working relationship with Baron and Bud in a prior class action lawsuit. The firm helped the City win about $400,000 in a lawsuit regarding MTBE chemicals in gasoline products that leached into and affected groundwater nationwide.
Gullo will act on the city’s behalf with Baron and Bud to ensure that the City gets the most benefit at settlement as possible. Like in any class action lawsuit, if the suit is won, Baron and Bud will get 25 percent of the settlement awarded to the City. If the suit is lost, the City will not incur any charges from Baron and Bud.
As the Environmental Protection Agency gets its hands around the issue, they will define standards of acceptable quantities of PFAs in drinking water, at which time the City may or may not have to take action.
"The city is likely facing unknown costs down the road" because we don’t know what the level of contamination will eventually be, or how we will clean it up, and what that cost will be, Gullo said.
Although trace elements have been found in Taneytown water, there is no need for residents to boil water yet. "I think at this point since we don’t have any red flags in front of our faces, we’re going to have to trust there is no current health hazard," Mayor Bradley Wantz said.
The council unanimously approved coming onboard with the lawsuit, noting especially if there are mitigation efforts down the line, there will be funding in place to take care of it.
Gullo said he will brief the council on any updates regarding the matter as the lawsuit unfolds.
