NSW farmer Alastair McLaren has lost hundreds of thousands of dollars due to PFAS contamination, but he's not one of the 30,000 people who will be compensated over the toxic chemicals.
A lawsuit against Australia's Department of Defence was settled on Monday, awarding more than $132 million to landowners around seven military bases across the country.
It is alleged residents were exposed to poisonous chemicals in a firefighting foam historically used at the sites, and the defence department negligently allowed them to escape into the environment.
PFAS is a group of manufactured chemicals which are still found in some household products but are no longer used by Defence in fire-training drills.
Only landowners were eligible to join the class action, which focused on loss of property values.
It means others like Alastair McLaren, who leased farmland near RAAF Base Richmond in Sydney's north-west, will not get a cent.
His paddock to plate beef business unravelled after it was revealed in 2019 the land was contaminated with PFAS.
He estimated he lost about $200,000.
"It was devastating. As a producer you don't want to sell contaminated product to people," Mr McLaren said.
He had to sell his 100 cattle after blood tests revealed the toxic chemicals were present in the animals, but also in his wife and children.
"It [a blood test] found that I had elevated levels of PFAS which likened me to a career firefighter," he said.
"It's very scary once you know the health effects."
Some studies from the United States and Europe have connected PFAS exposure to diseases such as cancer, but there is limited evidence in Australia to support the link to adverse health outcomes.
Mr McLaren estimates those who will receive a payout will get as little as $2,000 once fees are taken out of the settlement.
The payments to claimants such as Reannan Haswell, from Bullsbrook in Western Australia, will be determined on a case-by-case basis.
Ms Haswell is the lead applicant in the class action and said the settlement was a good outcome.
She lives in an area where residents have had to drink bottled water since 2016 to avoid contaminated sources.
"I don't like being wronged," Ms Haswell said.
"I don't think anyone, especially in Australia, should have to beg for safe, clean water for their families."
She says her children have different health issues which would be related to PFAS chemicals: "Muscle cramps, itchy skin when we're showering, drying of the skin, cholesterol."
The value of her home has dropped by 70 per cent.
"With the settlement, it allows us to possibly move on," she said.
The terms of the in-principle agreement between the Commonwealth and the claimants are yet to be finalised and will need to be approved in the Federal Court.
A spokesperson said Defence was committed to responding to the contamination and would continue to remediate and manage it.
They said settling the matter was "an important development for these communities".
A different class action related to Wreck Bay on the NSW's South Coast has been adjourned until the end of May.
In 2020, the Commonwealth paid $212 million to some residents of Oakey in Queensland, Katherine in the Northern Territory and Williamtown in NSW who were impacted by the chemicals.
Richmond farmer Mr McLaren said the federal government was the real winner in the latest settlement.
"That is dirt cheap. If you want a problem to go away — $130 something million … that's easy money," he said.
"I think it's probably a kick in the guts for some landowners because it's tokenism.
"If you lost $20,000 on your property value, two grand's not going to help you. And if you can't sell your property, you're still stuck on the contamination and the health effects are ongoing."
He now wants Australia to bring its PFAS restrictions in line with other developed countries like the US and Europe.
"We've got to ban the product getting into the systems," he said.
"It shouldn't be in consumable products. It shouldn't be in your make-up. It shouldn't be in your hair care products."
