When describing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances — known as “forever chemicals” — Shaw Industries’ Kellie Ballew, likes to use apples as an analogy.
“There’s a tremendous number of varieties,” Ballew, vice president of environmental affairs, said in a video interview. “You’ve got Galas and Granny Smith and Fuji and Honey Crisp and some are sweet, some are not, some are green, some are red, and they all have these different attributes. But then at the end of the day, they’re all an apple.”
Similarly, there are thousands of compounds that fall under the broad umbrella of “PFAS” or forever chemicals. Shaw Industries, one of the world’s largest carpet manufacturers with more than $6 billion in annual revenue, is facing a series of lawsuits filed by property owners in Northwest Georgia, alleging the company and others are responsible for dumping PFAS into the environment.
Historically, Shaw and other carpet manufacturers have used PFAS in their products as a treatment to repel water, dirt and stains. However, Ballew said Shaw has been taking steps to reduce its reliance on certain types of PFAS since May 2008, and it stopped using the compounds in its U.S. manufacturing operations altogether in January 2019.
Shaw Industries invented a new test to eliminate PFAS from its supply chain
Even then, Ballew said, Shaw noticed PFAS were still unknowingly entering its products via its suppliers, and the company invented a new testing method to identify and eliminate any lingering forever chemicals in its supply chain.