Maine has a 5-year imaginative and prescient for distributing $70M to farmers impacted by PFAS
A state advisory fee has permitted a five-year plan for serving to Maine farmers impacted by so-called without end chemical compounds.
The plan, born from months of debate with farmers, state officers, well being specialists and agricultural advocates, describes how Maine will administer some $70 million in state and federal funds to farmers whose land or water is contaminated with PFAS.
About $30 million would go on to impacted farmers to switch misplaced revenue, in keeping with the plan permitted by the PFAS Fund Advisory Committee earlier this week. Farmers making an attempt to remain afloat might obtain as much as two years of assist. Others trying to dissolve their companies would obtain a yr’s value of help to assist them determine their subsequent steps. Funds could possibly be able to distribute later this summer time, mentioned Beth Valentine, PFAS fund director.
The primary precedence is to assist farmers keep on their land, Valentine mentioned. However roughly $20 million is obtainable for the state to buy, maintain and handle contaminated property that farmers need to promote.
“Relying on the traits of the land, we’ll take a look at doubtlessly setting it apart as conservation land, doubtlessly promoting it to a different purchaser who’s fascinated about perhaps taking over one other type of agricultural manufacturing,” Valentine mentioned. “The top purpose is actually to protect as a lot agricultural land as doable.”
There’s additionally curiosity in utilizing state-acquired land for a possible analysis station, and Valentine mentioned some farmers might pursue utilizing their property for photo voltaic growth.
Land acquisition is topic to a rulemaking course of with public discover and hearings, Valentine mentioned. She projected that the foundations could possibly be finalized by the autumn, with the Division of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry accepting functions close to the top of the yr.
Extra funds would cowl PFAS contamination and remediation analysis, and supply blood testing and different well being screening and monitoring for impacted farmers.
Greater than 50 Maine farms have been discovered to be contaminated with PFAS to date.
This story seems by way of a media partnership with Maine Public.
