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3M

A 3M Plant in Illinois Was The Country’s Worst Emitter of a Climate-Killing ‘Immortal’ Chemical in 2021

The company was also sued this year by the state’s attorney general for discharging PFAS, contaminating groundwater and the Mississippi River. It says it will stop manufacturing and using PFAS in its products by 2025.

By Phil McKenna

3M's chemical plant in Cordova, Illinois released 73 tons of perfluoromethane (CF4) into the atmosphere, more than any other industrial facility in the county, in 2021. CF4 is 7,380 times more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas and remains in the atmosphere for 50,000 years. Credit: Phil McKenna

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