Proposed lawsuit filed over groundwater contamination near Yarmouth, N.S., airport

FILE - Logan Feeney pours a water sample with forever chemicals, known as PFAS, into a container for research, April 10, 2024, at a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency lab in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel, File)

A proposed class-action lawsuit has been filed against the federal government over groundwater contamination in a residential area near the Yarmouth, N.S., airport.

Residents in the area claim their property values have decreased since they became aware last year that their groundwater is contaminated with PFAS.

PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a class of human-made substances that can pose a risk to the environment and people’s heath.

Transport Canada began contacting residents in February 2024 to inform them there was PFAS contamination at the Yarmouth Airport. They also reportedly requested that residents agree to have water sampling done to see if the contamination had spread to their groundwater.

The affected area contains about 70 properties.

PFAS result of firefighting operations

Wagners, a Halifax-based law firm which filed the lawsuit on Tuesday, says PFAS from Transport Canada’s past firefighting operations at the airport has migrated into the area.

“Until 1997, Transport Canada (then the owner of the Yarmouth Airport) operated a fire-fighting training area at the Airport,” reads a news release from Wagners.

“As part of its operations, it used fire-fighting foam known as Aqueous Film Forming Foam. AFFF – which is generally prohibited in Canada - contains PFAS, or Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances, a class of thousands of chemicals that are referred to as ‘forever chemicals’, because that they do not break down easily in the environment.”

‘It’s poisoned our sense of security’

High levels of PFAS in drinking water can pose a danger to people’s health.

Wagners says the results from the testing show many residences have PFAS levels in their drinking water above various guideline levels.

“Transport Canada is offering bottled water to residents whose water sample results exceed Health Canada’s current PFAS objective, and is planning a pilot program to explore water treatment systems,” the release says.

The lawsuit is seeking remedies for all residents in the impacted area for the reduction in their property values.

The claim also wants the federal government to remediate the area and oversee residences connected to the public municipal water system.

“PFAS contamination has done more than poison our water - it’s poisoned our sense of security,” said Nick Hilton, one of the three proposed representative plaintiffs, in the release.

“Our home, once a place of comfort and future stability, has been devalued to the point where we no longer see it as a retirement asset, but a financial burden. With the cost of living so high, many of us rely on our homes as our nest eggs. But who wants to buy a house where the water and soil are unsafe? It’s in our drinking water, our gardens, and the water we bathe in. We can’t sell, we can’t leave, and we can’t ignore it. It leaves you with the feeling of being trapped.”

Wagners says the first step in the proceedings will be a hearing to determine whether the action should be certified and may proceed to a trial.

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