Nearly half of the Legislature signed onto a letter to Attorney General Andrea Campbell last week, imploring the state to join Worcester firefighters diagnosed with cancer in their lawsuit against companies that make firefighting gear alleged to include toxic PFAS chemicals.

Ninety-seven lawmakers – 24 senators, representing a majority of that chamber, plus 73 representatives – signed the letter, which asked Campbell to join and expand upon the suit that alleges manufacturers of turnout gear treated their products with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and sold them to fire departments and governments despite knowing the health risks of PFAS exposure. The federal suit was filed last year by 10 Worcester firefighters diagnosed with cancer.

“Our firefighters place themselves in harm’s way to protect the Commonwealth’s residents and property. In doing so, they utilize gear, procured by the government, with the expectation that the gear will help protect them from harm. That gear should not provide short term protection at the cost of long-term harm. We respectfully request that your office undertake litigation related to firefighter turnout gear and help protect those who protect us,” the lawmakers wrote in their Dec.18 letter to Campbell. 

PFAS is a class of man-made chemicals that do not break down entirely in the environment, and exposure to their long-lasting presence has been linked to serious and negative health impacts like thyroid disease and kidney cancer. PFAS chemicals are all around us; they are used in non-stick cookware, food packaging, children’s products, carpets, leather goods, ski wax, firefighting foams and more, and they have leached into drinking water supplies and the soil.

Serious levels of PFAS contamination have been found in more than 126 public drinking water systems in at least 86 Massachusetts communities.

Sen. Michael Moore of Millbury and Rep. James Hawkins of Attleboro circulated the letter for signatures, expanding on their legislative efforts to address PFAS exposure among firefighters. The duo filed a bill (S 1556 / H 2339) to require all protective firefighting equipment sold in Massachusetts to specify whether it contains PFAS chemicals and for what reasons by 2025, and to ban PFAS in firefighting gear by 2027.

“Ask anyone how the majority of firefighter line-of-duty deaths occur — most will probably say smoke inhalation or on-call injury. The shocking truth is that, from 2002 to 2019, cancer accounted for 66 percent of firefighter deaths, according to the International Association of Firefighters,” Moore said in a statement. “PFAS exposure from firefighting equipment is a crisis for firefighters and the communities they serve. It is unacceptable that our firefighters must every day step into gear that is slowly poisoning them with few alternatives. It is time for the Commonwealth to step in to join the fight against the manufacturers who are knowingly using toxic chemicals in this equipment — I hope this letter will move the needle and help demand accountability for our brave firefighters.”

Campbell’s office said it has received the letter and is reviewing it.

“AG Campbell is committed to continuing the office’s work at both the state and national level to address PFAS contamination and its significant impacts on Massachusetts residents, including our first responders,” a Campbell spokesperson said.

In June, a top official from Campbell’s Environmental Protection Division registered support for legislation that would implement many of the recommendations made last year by the PFAS Interagency Task Force. The official, Assistant Attorney General Andrew Goldberg, also said that studies have estimated that 99 percent of the US population has detectable levels of PFAS in their bloodstream.

PFAS contamination has become an increasingly urgent issue on Beacon Hill as the ubiquity of the chemicals and their negative health consequences have become better known.

In May 2022, then-AG Maura Healey filed a lawsuit, which was combined in the US District Court for the District of South Carolina with other similar suits, against manufacturers like 3M, Dupont and Tyco that manufacture PFAS chemicals contained in firefighting foam. The suit alleged 13 manufacturers “deceptively” advertised products containing PFAS as safe despite knowing the chemicals were highly toxic and dangerous to the environment.

During a February radio interview, Healey, now governor, described PFAS contamination as a “big problem” and said reining in the impact of PFAS chemicals is a priority for her administration.

The PFAS Interagency Task Force released a report in 2022 with 30 recommendations, including an entire section about fire departments and firefighters. Then-Fire Marshal Peter Ostroskey, who served on the task force, said PFAS exposure was something that “fire departments are very concerned about.”

The report said that only firefighting gear with PFAS is able to meet current standards, which likely contributes to the higher rates of cancer diagnosis and cancer-related deaths that firefighters experience compared to the general population.

The task force recommended prohibiting the use of aqueous film-forming foams (AFFF) for firefighter training, funding a second round of an AFFF take-back and disposal program, requiring fire departments to notify state environmental officials whenever AFFF is used, supporting efforts to develop turnout gear that is completely free from PFAS, and requiring turnout gear manufacturers to provide written notice of the inclusion of PFAS in the gear at the time of purchase.