Maine Farmland Trust (MFT) and MOFGA are jointly administering a PFAS emergency relief fund to support any Maine farm dealing with potential per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination.

The fund has four primary purposes at this time:

• To help pay for initial PFAS testing on farms that choose to do their own testing.
• To reduce the emotional impact of the PFAS crisis by funding wellness costs and supporting access to mental health services for impacted farmers.
• To provide short-term income replacement for farms that the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry (DACF) has identified as having high test results.
• To invest in infrastructure adaptations to help PFAS-impacted farms remain viable.

This fund is meant to serve as a safety net for farms, providing interim support from initial PFAS testing to when they can access DACF’s longer-term PFAS support programs. Income Replacement Grants and PFAS Testing Grants are now available to eligible farms. Applicants self-identified as Indigenous producers of food and medicine do not need to meet commercial farm eligibility criteria for the PFAS Testing Grants. Wellness grants are available to cover the cost of broadly understood investments in stress relief and mental health.

PFAS Testing Grants 

The PFAS Testing Grants Program, administered by MFT and MOFGA, assists farmers who have concerns regarding potential PFAS contamination. The program will pay for: 

•  Testing of home or irrigation water for contamination by these chemicals.
•  Testing of farm soil.
•  Testing of farm products. 

A simple application form will assess eligibility for the program, and several farms will be selected upon a weekly review to participate in the program. 

Eligibility and prioritization:

• • All commercial farms (a farm that sells at least $2,000 to consumers outside of the household) are eligible.
  • Applicants self-identified as Indigenous producers of food and/or medicine do not need to meet commercial farm eligibility criteria. 
  • Farms must state that they require financial assistance for PFAS testing. 
  • Farms who are seeking to test materials associated with land that was licensed and/or spread with biosolids.
  • Farms that derive at least 50% of their family income from their farm will be prioritized.
  • Farms classified as “Tier 1” licensed sites will be prioritized.
  • The program is available to farms whose lenders are requiring a water and/or soil test.
  • Farmers who are located on licensed sites, who had to pay for testing to investigate their risk prior to the establishment of this program on March 1, 2022, may seek reimbursement for tests that are ineligible for reimbursement from state agencies due to having low test results.

We have limited resources and unfortunately may not be able to fund all eligible applications. Award decisions will be made according to available testing program funds, applicant eligibility and priorities. 

Confidentiality: 

Test results will need to be shared with MFT or MOFGA, as we will seek reimbursement from the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and DACF for high test results in order to replenish the testing fund for other farmers to access. We will not share this information outside of our organizations, DACF and DEP.

Process: 

• Farms submit an application here. 
• MFT and MOFGA will review applications weekly and determine award recipients and amounts based on eligibility, priority sites and amount of funding available.
• MOFGA and MFT will pay testing fees directly to cooperating consultants and laboratories.
• For water sampling awards, we will provide instructions to recipients on how to collect samples in cooperation with Maine Environmental Laboratory.
• For all other sampling awards, testing will be scheduled and collected in cooperation with Northern Tilth.
• For farmers seeking reimbursement for tests taken before the program launch, we will pay the farmer directly.

PFAS Farmer Wellness Fund

This fund is intended to holistically support farmers and farm workers impacted by PFAS contamination by providing up to $500 per person to pay for wellness expenses. The Maine PFAS Farmer Wellness Fund was originally launched as a project of the Maine Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network (Maine FRSAN) funded by USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) awarded to the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry (DACF) and managed by the University of Maine Cooperative Extension (UMCE). The fund is now managed by MOFGA and partially funded through the PFAS Emergency Fund co-administered by MOFGA and Maine Farmland Trust.

Eligibility and prioritization:

• All commercial farms are eligible. A farm does not need to have confirmed high PFAS test results, though those farms and farmworkers  will be prioritized.
• Farmworkers must be based on a farm affected by PFAS.
• Indigenous growers of food and/or medicine providing for the community.

Apply to the wellness fund.

El Fondo PFAS de Bienestar para Trabajadores de Agricultura en Maine.

Fon PFAs pou Byennèt Kiltivatè nan Maine.

We cannot pay the applicant directly for or reimburse any expenses and will instead directly pay for any services or products applicants request. Please take care to verify the contact information for payment for the service or product before submission.

As farmers, wellness is broadly defined. There is a wide range of eligible uses for this fund including therapy, childcare, acupuncture, gift cards to purchase uncontaminated food and/or water, massage, traditional healers and other supports that would help reduce stress at this time. If testing for PFAS contamination will reduce stress you are experiencing, please see the specific testing fund application above.

All answers on this form are confidential to those administering the fund, which includes a limited staff from MOFGA, MFT and UMCE. Once we have followed up with you about your request, you will be enrolled in the program and receive a check for up to $500 based on the amount of your grant request.

Income Replacement Grants

Income Replacement Grants replace lost business income for farms that have paused or reduced farm sales due to PFAS contamination. Farms will receive interim support through weekly checks based on their prior farm income, the availability of funds and the needs of other farms. Meanwhile, DACF is working to establish its own PFAS Income Replacement Program that will provide long-term funding for this purpose. 

The program is open to farms that receive test results indicating high levels of PFAS. 

Farms wishing to participate should take the following steps to enroll:

1. If you have tested for PFAS contamination and received results that indicate high levels, contact Nancy McBrady, bureau director at Maine DACF, [email protected], 207-287-7522. If you have not yet tested for PFAS, find information about testing here.
2. After contacting Nancy McBrady, she will provide a referral to MFT and MOFGA, confirming high levels of PFAS contamination and the need to stop sales that will make farmers eligible for the Income Replacement Program.
3. Farm enrollment will be complete when the farm is contacted by a representative from MFT or MOFGA and the following elements are received:

• • Verification that the farmer earns at least 50% of their family’s income from the farm business.
  • The farm has stopped sales of contaminated products.
  •  A W-9 form and a recent Schedule F from the farm.

Participants enrolled in the Income Replacement Program are paid bi-weekly through MOFGA and MFT until they begin receiving payments from DACF’s PFAS Income Replacement Program or the fund runs out of money. Participants agree to have their income replacement award deducted from the payment they receive from the Maine Income Replacement Program. That deducted portion of their award from DACF will be used to replenish MOFGA and MFT’s emergency fund that will continue to support contaminated farms.

PFAS Infrastructure Investment Program

Farms affected by PFAS contamination have a wide variety of needs to enable financial stability and, where possible, future farm viability. MOFGA and MFT see a need to quickly administer funding to cover the upfront costs of infrastructure necessary to farmers’ responses to PFAS contamination while DACF develops longer-term support programs.

Infrastructure Funding Program Use of Funds

Eligibility:

•  Farms who have test results that show contamination in water, farm soils, crops, livestock or products (for water, contamination must be above action threshold), and are referred to us by DACF with the recommendation (from DACF or the Center for Disease Control [CDC]) that the farm should invest in noted appropriate infrastructure.   

Use:

• Any infrastructure expenses 

Process:

• Farms who have tested, contacted DACF with their results and identified necessary infrastructure investments needed to continue production safely. 
• DACF refers the farm to MOFGA/MFT confirming contamination and their recommendation that the farm pay for noted infrastructure.
• Farms send MOFGA/MFT a cost estimate and timeline from the infrastructure vendor. MOFGA/MFT will share that cost estimate and timeline with DACF for approval.
• MOFGA/MFT meet weekly to assess the capacity of the fund to cover the upfront costs of approved infrastructure investments until DACF contracts are in place to directly cover the costs of noted infrastructure or budgeted funds run out.