Fourth Circuit Reverses PFAS Injunction

The Fourth Circuit vacated a preliminary injunction barring Chemours from discharging more HFPO-DA, one type of PFAS, from its Washington Works facility into the Ohio River than its Clean Water Act (CWA) permit allows. The Fourth Circuit first held that the plaintiff, West Virginia Rivers Coalition, had shown a substantial likelihood of Article III associational standing through member Charlise Robinson, who avoided boating in the river because of Chemours’s alleged permit violations. According to the Fourth Circuit, that decision to avoid boating was an injury in fact, traceable to the discharges, and redressable by an injunction. However, the Fourth Circuit found that the district court’s irreparable-harm analysis was flawed. The Fourth Circuit reasoned that the district court’s analysis improperly weighed alleged public harm, presumed harm from a CWA violation, and relied on expert testimony showing only increased risk rather than harm that was more likely than not. Because Robinson did not drink or cook with her tap water, the finding of harm was clearly erroneous, and the injunction was vacated.

June 3, 2026 | West Virginia Rivers Coalition Inc. v. Chemours Co. FC LLC, No. 25-1924 (4th Cir.).