Wolverine always has been and remains committed to the community, as evidenced by its actions over the past 18 months. Wolverine has installed over 500 proven, highly effective whole-house filters and over 200 point of use filters that virtually eliminate any presence of PFOA and PFOS. In addition, we continue to provide Culligan drinking water to hundreds of homes. Finally, we’ve worked at an accelerated pace at our House Street property, former Tannery, and the surrounding areas, sampling over 1,500 residential wells, installing over 70 monitoring wells, collecting hundreds of soil and groundwater samples, and working closely with the DEQ and EPA to fully determine the possible sources and extent of PFOA and PFOS.
This commitment carries through to discussing water quality issues and additional long term water solutions for the community, including the Township’s proposal for an extension of its municipal water system. Wolverine Worldwide has been and remains at the table to discuss these issues. This is a position we have held since day one, and any suggestion that Wolverine is unwilling to negotiate, has stepped away from the table, or has recently changed its position is simply untrue.
From the beginning, however, we have also said that multiple parties contributed to the water quality issues in our community, and that any solution must include all relevant parties. We made this position clear in a February 23, 2018, letter to the Township saying, “We wholeheartedly agree with the Township that many parties contributed to the water quality issues facing our community, and believe that any long-term solution must involve all those parties.” In addition, both Plainfield Township and the State have recognized the role that other parties have played in area water quality issues, and the need to involve those parties.
Negotiating through the media is counterproductive, and that is why we have tried to remain silent about the status of the discussions. Even so, through our words and our actions, we’ve demonstrated that Wolverine is committed to continuing its efforts to work with the experts, gather the right data, involve the right parties, and find the best solutions for our community.