PFAS Advisory Sign, January 4, 2023. PC: Fox 11 Online
MARINETTE & GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – With work on extensive pre-trial motions continuing, a March 3 trial for the state’s lawsuit against Tyco Fire Products was canceled Monday. A new trial date wasn’t set.
In March 2022, the state Dept. of Justice filed the civil lawsuit, alleging Johnson Controls and Tyco Fire Products violated the state’s hazardous substance spills law. According to the complaint, the companies failed to notify the DNR of a PFAS discharge. It also states they failed to clean up contamination at and around the Fire Technology Center in Marinette. Tyco has denied the allegations.
In court Monday, the attorneys and court discussed the variety of motions to be heard. Additionally, the parties are still waiting to see how a case before the Wisconsin Supreme Court on the DNR’s power to regulate cleanup of PFAS sites will impact this case.
A motions hearing is scheduled for Jan. 23, with additional hearings anticipated in March.
Although it is a Marinette County case, Brown County Judge Tammy Jo Hock is hearing it.
PFAS are man-made chemicals found in a number of products, including fire-fighting foam. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, PFAS can increase cancer risk and can affect growth, learning and women’s fertility.
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