Document zdg8Qm88K6Z2EdBpZ5V3gqkjR

28 March 1999 To: 3M Iresignmy positionasEnvironmental Specialisteffective6April 1999. My resignation ispromptedbymy profounddisappointmentin3M'shandlingoftheenvironmentalrisks associated with the manufacture and use ofperfluorinated sulfonates(PFOS)(CAS# 29081-56-9)and itsprecursors,suchasethylFOSE alcohol(CAS #1691-99-2) and methylFOSE alcohol(CAS #24448-09-7). PerfluorooctansefulfonateisthemostinsidiouspollutantsincePCB. Itisprobablymore damaging thanPCB becauseitdoesnotdegrade,whereasPCB does;itismore toxictowildlife; anditssinkintheenvironmentappearstobebiotaandnotsoiland sediment,asisthecasewith PCB. Ihaveworked withinthesystemtolearnmore aboutthischemicalandtomake the company aware ofthedangersassociatedwithitscontinueduse. ButIhave continually metroadblocks,delays,and indecision.Forweeks on endIhavereceivedassurancesthat my sampleswould beanalyzed soon--nevertoseeresults. There arealwaysexcusesand littleisaccomplished. Icanillustratewithseveralexamples. Formore thantwentyyears3M'secotoxicologistshaveurgedthecompany toallow testingtoperforman ecologicalriskassessmenton PFOS andsimilarchemicals. SinceIhavebeenassignedtotheproblemayearago,thecompany hascontinuedits hesitancy. Over aperiodofsevenmonths Imade frequentrequeststhatecologicalrisk consultantsbehiredtohelpme plantoxicitytesting,environmentalsampling, chemicalfatestudies,andecologicalriskprocedure, Istillhavenotreceived authorizationeventobringpeopleintointerview. Irequested,veryfrequently,overanine-monthperiod,asampleofchemicaltosend outforfatepropertyandecotoxieitytesting. FinallyIwas providedwithonethat apparentlythedivisionhad had allalong. IputtogetherapioneerriskassessmentonPFOS thatindicatedagreaterthan 100% probabilityofharm toseamammals, basedon preliminarydataontheconcentration ofPFOS inmenhaden fishmeal. The 8ecommitteetoldme thattheywould liketo reconsidertheassessmentafterwe hadavalidatedvalueforfishmeal. Thatanalysis was givenhighpriorityby thecommittee. Afterthreemonthstheanalysisisstillnot done--notbecausetherewere technicalproblems,butbecausemanagement didnot actuallygivetheanalysishighpriority. 3M submittedaTSCA 8elastMay. ThereistremendousconcernwithinEPA, the country, and theworld aboutpersistentbioaceumulative chemicals such asPFOS. Justbeforethatsubmissionwe foundPFOS inthebloodofeaglets-eagletsstill young enoughthattheironlyfoodconsistedoffishcaughtinremotelakesbytheir parents. Thisfindingindicatesawidespreadenvironmentalcontaminationandfood chaintransferandprobablebioaccumulationandbio-magnification. Thisisavery significantfindingthatthe8ereportingrulewas createdtocollect. 3M choseto 3MA10065677 reportsimplythatPFOS hadbeenfound inthebloodofanimals,whichistruebut omits themost significantinformation. One ofourcustomers,Griffin,hasdataonsome ofourchemicals. They developed thisdataforpesticideregistrationpurposes. Istartedregularlyaskingforpermission tovisitGriffinandviewthedatalastMay. Theirdatacanhelpusplanourstudiesof similarchemicals. Itcanalsoindicateifthereisanunforeseenrisktocertainbiotaor viacertainexposurepathways. Itwas tenmonths beforeIwas allowedtovisit Griffin,atwhichtimeIdidnotgettoseethedata. Ihavetoreturnanothertimetosee it. 3M waitedtoolongtotellcustomersaboutthewidespreaddispersalofPFOS in peopleandtheenvironment. We knewbeforeMay of1998,yet3M didnotstart tellingcustomersuntilJanuaryof1999. IfeltguiltyaboutthisandtoldcustomersI personallyknew earlier. Still,itwasnotasearlyasitshouldhavebeen. Ikept waitingfor3M todo itsduty,asIwas continuallyassuredthatitwould. Some ofthe customershave done riskassessmentsonthePFOS precursortheyuse. They assume thereisnotabackgroundintheenvironmentand inwildlife. Sincethereisa background,theirriskassessmentsareinaccurate. Thus theycanmake inappropriate businessdecisionsandnotrealizethattheiruseofPFOS precursorscontributestoan aggregate risk. 3M continuestomake and sellthese,chemicals,thoughthecompany knows ofan ecologicalriskassessmentIdidthatindicatesthereisabetterthan 100% probability thatperfluorooctansulfonateisbiomagnifyinginthefood chainandharmingsea mammals. Thischemical ismore stablethanmany rocks. And thechemicalsthe company isconsideringforreplacementarejustasstableand biologicallyavailable. The riskassessmentIperformedwas simple,andnotworstcase. Ifworstcaseis used,theprobabilityofharm exceeds 100,000%. 3M toldthoseofusworking onthefluorochemicalprojectnottowritedown our thoughtsorhaveemaildiscussionson issuesbecauseofhow ourspeculationscould beviewed inalegaldiscoveryprocess. Thishasstymiedintellectualdevelopmenton theissue, and stifleddiscussionon the seriousethicalimplications ofdecisions.I Ihaveworked tothebestofmy abilitywithinthesystemtoseethattherightactionsare takenonbehalfoftheenvironment. At almosteverystep,Ihave beenassuredthataction willbetaken-- yetIseesloworno results.Iam toldthecompany isconcerned,buttheir actionsspeaktodifferentconcernsthanmine. Icanno longerparticipateintheprocess that3M hasestablishedforthemanagement ofPFOS andprecursors. Forme itis unethicaltobe concerned withmarkets,legaldefensibilityand imageoverenvironmental safety. Sincerely, RichPurdy 3MA10065678