Tampa Bay Water awarded $21 million in settlement

WMNF | July 25, 2025

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"Tampa Bay Water was awarded $21 million in a settlement after a class action lawsuit against the manufacturers of PFAS, also known as forever chemicals. Tampa Bay Water is working on plans with the settlement money to ensure water quality in Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Pasco Counties.

PFAS are called forever chemicals because they can’t break down in water or in the body and will continue to damage it as long as they are present. PFAS are proven to cause long-term health problems such as cancer, thyroid disease and liver damage. Tampa Bay Water decided in 2020 to pursue litigation against the companies that created PFAS in light of the chemicals showing up in the water supply.

“Tampa Bay Water saw very early on that this could create expenses for us and therefore to the ratepayers, in terms of having to test and remediate the water,” said Harry Cohen, the Hillsborough County Commissioner and chair of Tampa Bay Water. “So we got involved with this lawsuit to essentially protect the taxpayers from having to pay for the testing and remediation, we’re now going to have money from companies like 3M and DuPont, who are some of the manufacturers of these materials, but they’re going to be giving us this money in order to do that work.”