PFAS testing for game, wildlife included in governor's budget

February 18, 2022

Read the full article by Vivien Leigh (News Center Maine)

"Maine Gov. Janet Mills' supplemental budget, which was unveiled earlier this week, earmarks nearly 9.5 million dollars to address contamination from PFAS chemicals. Several million dollars is slated for improving and expanding PFAS testing capacity in Maine. More than 3 million dollars in the supplemental budget is slated to support Maine farms and farmers who are dealing with PFAS contamination in soil, water, livestock and produce.

The budget proposal includes establishing a first-of-its-kind lab at the University of Maine to test wildlife and game to help reduce human exposure to the toxic compounds.

The push for the lab began after high levels of PFAS chemicals in deer meat were reported in late November.

That prompted the state to issue a "do not eat advisory" for deer harvested from Fairfield and five surrounding communities, considered a hotspot for PFAS contamination.

With no testing capability available in Maine, the samples were sent to a lab in Massachusetts before hunting season got underway.

Because of the backlog, those results were made public just as the season was winding down."