Interview by Holli Cederholm Introduction Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), or forever chemicals as they’re often referred to, are not new. And neither is the contamination of land, water, food and even human bodies by these persistent chemicals. PFAS, distinguished by incredibly strong carbon-fluorine bonds that do not easily degrade in the environment, were invented
On March 31, Erin French of The Lost Kitchen in Freedom, Maine, announced the opening of the restaurant’s 2022 reservation system with a special fundraising effort to support local farmers dealing with PFAS (per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances) contamination. Through French’s encouragement over the last month, over 25,000 people have donated more than $950,000 to the
MOFGA is celebrating landmark policies enacted two weeks ago by Maine’s Legislature. With bipartisan support, two bills address the devastating problem of farmland contamination from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), often referred to as forever chemicals due to their persistence and prevalence in contaminating human health and the environment. One bill stops the practice of
The bill would ban the spreading of PFAS-contaminated sludge on Maine farmland, a key step in stemming further contamination of Maine land and water. The extent of contamination of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to Maine farmland and water continues to come to light across the state. The contamination on farms that have come forward
To learn more about PFAS contamination in Maine, check out our resources page. We continue to update it with information for farmers and gardeners, and the general public. To support farmers dealing with potential PFAS contamination, MOFGA is working with Maine Farmland Trust to administer a PFAS emergency fund. It is meant to serve as a
Maine – Maine Farmland Trust and the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) are launching a new PFAS Emergency Relief Fund to support farmers impacted by potential PFAS contamination. “This fund will help make sure that farmers that are facing extreme uncertainty about their futures get interim relief until they get the support they
Maine State House, Augusta, ME. Impacted farmers and a coalition of groups held a press conference outside the State House in Augusta today to urge passage of LD 1911– An Act To Prohibit the Contamination of Clean Soils with So-called Forever Chemicals sponsored by Rep. Bill Pluecker of Warren. The bill will ban the application
The chemicals known as per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) continue to come to light as contaminants in agriculture. Maine farms, conventional and organic, are increasingly testing water, soil and crops to determine if PFAS contamination exists. As we wrote in a previous blog post, these forever chemicals persist in the environment decades after they were
The chemicals known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have been widely used since the 1950s in products ranging from food packaging to fire fighting foam. PFAS have recently been recognized as contaminants in agriculture and are believed to largely be entering soil through the application of biosolids, industrial sludges and ashes, which may contain
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