Eternal pollutants: Eau de Paris files a complaint against X.
Eau de Paris, the public water utility of the Blue Community / Blue City of Paris, is taking action to defend the quality of its drinking water and the rights of its users. On Friday 28 March, at the request of the Mayor of Paris, the water company filed a complaint against X with the Paris Court of First Instance. The aim is to establish the responsibility of the producers of PFAS, the ‘persistent pollutants’ that contaminate water, and to enforce the ‘polluter pays’ principle.
The contamination of drinking water by persistent pollutants is a public health issue that must alert all stakeholders and require strong responses. Recently, the associations Générations Futures and UFC-Que Choisir revealed the presence of TFA, a PFAS molecule, in the drinking water of 96% of the municipalities tested, including Paris. Users are right to be concerned, even if the levels found in Paris in this study are below current standards.
“The fight against those responsible for this health scandal has only just begun. The producers will have to answer for their actions in court. Ensuring safe drinking water is a public health imperative that requires a strong political response. The government must do everything in its power to ensure that the manufacturers of these substances pay for the clean-up, in line with the polluter pays principle. It is not up to the users to foot the bill.”
Anne Hidalgo, Mayor of Paris
The complaint relates to the offences of water pollution, soil pollution caused by the dumping of waste and serious damage to the environment, as defined in the Environmental Code (Articles L. 216-6, L. 231-2 and L. 173-3). The action brought by Eau de Paris therefore seeks to defend water users by demanding that the polluters be held responsible and that they finance the repairs. In particular, it follows the unanimous wish expressed by the Paris City Council that the City of Paris, in conjunction with other local authorities, should take all the necessary steps to obtain compensation for the damage caused.
“It is the polluters who must pay, the multinational chemical companies that market these pollutants whose toxicity they have known for decades. Not the users, not the water suppliers, not the local authorities.” Dan Lert, President of Eau de Paris
Paris water is safe, but the cost of treatment is unfair
Eau de Paris confirms that the drinking water distributed in Paris fully complies with health standards, including for the sum of the 20 PFAS that will soon be included in the health monitoring system of the ARS Ile-de-France. Analyses carried out in 2024 showed that the totals were indeed below the legal limit of 0.1 µg/L.
However, the presence of these substances in the raw water means that treatment and monitoring will have to be stepped up, resulting in an estimated additional cost of €2 million for Eau de Paris in 2024 alone. These additional costs, unfairly borne by users, must be borne by those responsible for the pollution.
Repairing environmental damage and preventing pollution at source.
The aim of this lawsuit is to clearly identify those responsible and to obtain compensation for the environmental and financial damage caused by perpetual pollutants. The City of Paris and Eau de Paris are seeking to have the environment restored by those who have profited from the marketing of perpetual pollutants. This nationwide problem requires a response from the State and the European Union to put an end to this pollution.
In a letter sent to the Minister for Ecological Transition on 5 March 2025, Anne Hidalgo, Mayor of Paris, called on the French government to ban PFAS to prevent their spread in the environment and to take the necessary regulatory and legislative measures to enforce the polluter-pays principle.
For years, Eau de Paris has been at the forefront of efforts to protect water resources. It has launched a groundbreaking aid programme in water catchment areas. It is based on the commitment of more than 115 farmers to protect water and is proving its effectiveness.
The City of Paris and Eau de Paris are determined to protect water resources and to defend the environment and the interests of users.
