Fay Miller: ‘It’s for the people of Katherine’
KATHERINE Town Council will join a multimillion-dollar class action lawsuit sung the Defence Department over PFAS exposure
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KATHERINE Town Council will join a multimillion-dollar class action lawsuit sung the Defence Department over PFAS exposure. .
Councillors unanimously voted to opt in to a class action this week.
Speaking to ABC Darwin, Katherine Mayor Fay Miller said while Council itself didn’t “have an issue” with Defence, it decided to stay part of the lawsuit in the best interests of the community.
“We decided that in the future, we don’t know what’s going to happen,” she said.
“So we’ve decided to stay in and not opt out.
“It’s for the people of Katherine.”
ERIN Brockovich here to take up fight against PFAS contamination
Ms Miller said she would also continue to work with Defence.
Today is the final day Katherine residents can opt-out of the proceedings, and unless they have reached out to Shine Lawyers, they will be part of the lawsuit.
Shine Lawyers filed a class-action lawsuit in August last year, alleging that Defence negligently allowed firefighting foam to escape from RAAF Base Tindal and contaminate the town’s soil and groundwater.
The foam contains potentially dangerous man-made chemicals called PFAS and PFOA. The long-term health impact of exposure to the chemicals are still unknown.
KATHERINE files multimillion-dollar lawsuit against Defence Department over PFAS contamination
At the time of filing, Shine Lawyers’ national special counsel for class actions Joshua Aylward said Katherine was “devastated” by the ongoing exposure to PFAS chemicals.
“Our research has revealed that PFAS chemicals have been spreading from RAAF Base Tindal for decades, and continue to do so,” he said.
“The toxic chemicals amass and persist in the environment and in the human body, and the levels seen in Katherine are exceedingly high and widespread.
“Exposure to these toxic chemicals have been linked to immune dysfunction, hormonal interference, thyroid disruption and certain types of cancer.
“Many people in the community are trying to move their family out of this toxic area, but are stuck, unable to sell their property.”
The Katherine class action follows the launch of a class action in Oakey by Shine Lawyers against the Defence.
The class action has been filed on behalf of members of the Katherine community who own, or either own, residential or commercial property in the investigation area.
It is alleged that the contamination by PFAS has negatively impacted land values in Katherine.
At the time of filing, a Defence spokesman said it had been advised about the proceedings, which were filed in the Federal Court Friday against the Commonwealth of Australia
“At this time, no formal documentation has been served on the Commonwealth,” he said.
“The claim will be handled in accordance with the Attorney-General’s Legal Services Directions 2017.
“Defence will make no further public comment at this stage.”
Defence has today been contacted for further comment.
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