The UK Government is moving too slowly to tackle ‘forever chemical’ contamination, the polluters are getting away with it – so we are taking legal action to hold them to account.

Support our claim against the main emitter of PFAS ‘forever chemicals’ in Thornton-Cleveleys.

We are a group of residents who have had their lives upended by findings of carcinogenic chemicals in our gardens, our allotments, the parks in which our children play and the food we eat. Recent blood testing in our town has also found high levels of these chemicals in the blood of the residents tested.

We need accountability, we need answers, and we are taking action.

Why are we fighting?

An investigation is currently underway in our town, led by Wyre Council and Lancashire County Council, as well as the Environment Agency (the EA) and UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) (the “Agencies”).

The Agencies are investigating whether so-called “forever chemicals”, PFAS chemicals, have contaminated the land in our town. To find out more about what the Agencies are doing, and what they have found already, please have a look here: Hillhouse Technology Enterprise Zone - Thornton-Cleveleys – Wyre Council

There are over 10,000 types of PFAS – the two main chemicals of concern in our town are PFOA and EEA-NH4. PFOA has been categorised by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, part of the WHO, as a Group 1 carcinogen. It is also bioaccumulative, which means that it builds up in the environment and in our bodies over time, and takes a very long time to break down. Work is ongoing to understand the health and environmental implications of EEA-NH4.

These two chemicals have been used by AGC Chemicals Europe Ltd to manufacture products at their Hillhouse site right next to our homes. AGC bought ICI’s fluoropolymers business, including the Hillhouse plant, in 1999, and says it used PFOA there until 2012.

The progress of the Agencies’ investigation has been slow. Many residents feel that too little action has been taken and that they are now left with unanswered questions and no clear way ahead.

Another problem reported by residents is the provision of patchy information by the Agencies and a feeling that there are too many gaps in the information given. That is one of the reasons why the site “Hillhouse Watch” was set up, by residents for residents: to improve the flow of information and collate answers from the Agencies when they are provided.

What did we find in our blood?

The recent PFAS blood testing in our town, and its shocking results, have been widely reported in the UK news.

The media have branded our town, Thornton-Cleveleys, as the ‘Erin Brockovich’ town of the UK – due to the fact that the blood test results revealed that almost 70% of the residents who were tested have PFAS levels placing them at ‘high risk’, when measured against US chemical and clinical standards, of potentially developing adverse health effects that are associated with the chemicals.

Epidemiological surveys indicate that these risks can include high cholesterol and some types of cancers – including kidney and testicular cancer. See the following article for a debrief on the results: PFAS chemicals in Thornton-Cleveleys residents' blood

These blood tests were carried out in partnership with Leigh Day, Watershed Investigations, and Changing Ideas.

According to Dr Dave Megson, the scientist responsible for analysing the blood samples, 46 of the 49 residents who were tested had PFAS levels high enough to place them in the top 1% of levels that we would expect to see in the general US population.

That is not a typo – unlike other major countries, like the US, the UK has not historically carried out surveillance of PFAS levels in the general population, though a biomonitoring programme is currently being developed by UKHSA. At present, there is no UK data to compare our results to.

If our results were to be compared against the general US population, they would be higher than 99% of all results.

What does all this mean for residents?

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) advises residents living within 1km of the Hillhouse site to wash and peel any produce grown in the soil before eating it, and to avoid eating home-produced eggs or egg-laying poultry from within 1km of the site.

The Environment Agency has concluded that two well-used allotment sites in the town meet the criteria to be designated as “contaminated land”.

This, combined with the recent blood test results, is having a direct impact on the way in which people in our town can live their lives, from what they eat to what they do in their gardens and may also impact their health longer-term.

We have a significant PFAS problem in Thornton-Cleveleys. We believe the local factory, AGC Chemicals Europe Ltd, which used PFOA at the Hillhouse site, is responsible for this contamination, and so we need to hold our local polluter to account.

What are we doing about it?

To date, we have had to rely on the work of law firm Leigh Day and philanthropic donations to uncover the fact of local contamination and begin to understand the full implications of this.

Whilst the Agencies are engaged, progress is too slow, and we are concerned that the Agencies may fail to deliver a proper plan for the “clean up” locally and financial support for those of us who are no longer able to grow our own food, enjoy our gardens or rest assured that simply going for a walk or swim locally is not further impacting our health.

For that reason, we want to take legal action.

What will the legal claim do?

The legal claim will focus on these things:

• Claims for compensation for the injuries (health effects) caused by PFAS contamination.
• Claims for compensation for the loss of use and enjoyment of land on our properties.
• Claims for compensation for the reduction in the value of our properties.
• Claims for compensation for the public nuisance caused by the contamination.

As with all legal claims, much time, patience and funding will be required to progress this through the courts.

Unfortunately, the system of justice we have in the UK is slow-moving.

What will donations be used for?

Through the lifetime of the claim, your donations would be used to fund expert work. In the first instance, that expert work is likely to include the following:

• Commissioning further blood testing to be done in Thornton-Cleveleys, to the extent that residents wish to participate in this: Our experts have indicated that whilst our current sample includes 49 participants, it will be important to undertake further tests if possible, to assess any patterns in results which might help us to better understand exposure routes, for example.
• Commissioning an expert epidemiologist to interpret the blood results obtained.
• Commissioning further expert chemical analysis of local soil, water and/or air to better understand the vectors of contamination locally and the extent to which emissions of PFAS are ongoing.
• Commissioning expert advice for residents who have been directly impacted by the contamination, to include health advice relating to PFAS and PFOA in particular.

Why donate money to support a legal action in a small community in Lancashire?

Whilst this story begins with our small town in Lancashire, the issues it involves are much bigger.

The fight we are bringing in Thornton-Cleveleys might seem like a one-off, somewhere distant in the north of England, but all of the data available suggests that, unfortunately, it is just the tip of the iceberg. The following map shows that nearly 23,000 sites across Europe are contaminated with ‘forever chemicals’: The Map of Forever Pollution - The Forever Pollution Project

This isn’t a “local” problem, this is an international scandal.

The Environmental Audit Committee has recognised that the UK has a PFAS problem, and that communities across the UK are impacted. However, to date, whilst there is a PFAS plan, this is woefully inadequate in terms of solid action points.

Where the Government won’t, or can’t step in, it is going to take the legal action of small towns like ours to pave a way for other communities to hold polluters to account. Similar cases in the US, in Sweden and in Italy have shown us that it is possible to take on the polluting Goliaths and win. It is not easy, but it is a battle that needs to be fought.

In doing so we will be paving the way for other communities and also ensuring that the Government and Agencies have to engage systemically with the fact of PFAS and the environmental and health harms which are blighting our green and pleasant land, our health and our homes.

Help us to fight by making a donation.

Next Steps

We are immensely grateful for any and all donations – each will be vitally important as our investigation progresses.

In the event of a legal claim, your donations will be vital. We are a small community, and AGC Chemicals Europe is part of AGC Inc., a multinational organisation headquartered in Japan, and a member of the Mitsubishi Group – we will need all the help we can get.

A massive thank you to anyone who chooses to donate – we will keep you informed of developments through this page.