New York Attorney General Letitia James on Thursday sued some of the nation’s largest chemical and agricultural companies — 3M Company, EIDP Inc., The Chemours Company Inc., Corteva Inc., and DuPont De Nemours Inc. — for contributing to decades of toxic polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) pollution in the state through their use in consumer products.

PFAS, known as “forever chemicals” because of their ability to persist in the environment without breaking down, have been associated with an increased risk of cancer, birth defects, pregnancy complications, high cholesterol, hormone issues, and a wide range of other health problems.

Attorney General James alleges that these companies manufactured, marketed and sold PFAS that they knew to be toxic for use in consumer products, according to a press release from her office. She further alleges that the companies deceived consumers and the public about their exposure to PFAS and the contamination of the environment, and failed to warn about the risks of PFAS in consumer goods. James is seeking a court order holding the companies liable for the environmental and public health damage they have caused, requiring them to fund cleanup efforts throughout New York, and ordering them to properly warn consumers about their products’ risks. The lawsuit also seeks damages, restitution and other financial penalties.

“Big companies like 3M and DuPont knowingly sold toxic products that threatened New Yorkers’ health and polluted our environment for decades. It’s time for them to pay for the damage they caused,” said the attorney general. “For far too long, our communities have unfairly shouldered the costs of protecting people from these toxic forever chemicals and cleaning up their contamination. I look forward to ensuring the companies responsible for PFAS pollution are held accountable.”

James alleges that the companies violated New York laws by producing, marketing and selling products containing chemicals they knew to be harmful to New Yorkers’ health and the environment for decades. The companies violated New Yorkers’ rights to clean air and water by causing widespread environmental contamination. They violated New York’s consumer protection laws by deceptively marketing their products as safe, when in fact, they contained toxic chemicals. The companies also engaged in repeated and persistent fraud, allowing them to illegally profit by failing to warn New Yorkers of the health and environmental risks of their products.

The attorney general is seeking a court order holding the companies liable for the environmental and public health effects of their PFAS products and requiring them to fund cleanup efforts to rid communities of the toxic chemicals. The lawsuit also seeks to prevent the companies from selling any products containing harmful PFAS without adequate warnings, and to end any misleading advertising. In addition, James is seeking damages, disgorgement of all illegally earned profits, restitution and other penalties, according to the press release.