PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 23, 2022
Despite the outcry that has arisen in recent years, wastewater sludge, which has been linked to PFAS contamination, is still being spread on Maine fields. Rep. Bill Pluecker, I-Warren, has introduced a bill, L.D. 1911, to ban the spreading of sludge or sludge product, including compost. The state DEP has issued more than 700 sludge application licenses to farmers in every corner of Maine. DEP estimates it could cost $20 million a year to test these sites and install water filtration systems where needed. That doesn’t include the cost of reimbursing farmers for lost produce or livestock sales, or buying them out if scientists say their land is no longer suitable for farming. Farmers are asking lawmakers for financial help to pay their bills while they await the state investigation of their wells, fields, crops and livestock, the installation of water filtration systems, and the search for soils on their properties that might still be suitable for farming.