PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 19, 2023
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said Friday that the federal government needs $20 million to study so-called forever chemicals and devise a national strategy to respond to the problem. Maine’s congressional delegation agrees and is pushing for more money to alleviate the PFAS crisis on several fronts. Vilsack said he doesn’t fault states like Maine that have taken a preemptive approach to the problem, but a federal response would need to first figure out what safe levels would be in soil and produce. Researchers are still learning about the health effects of exposure to the chemicals. More than 500 private wells in Maine have been found to exceed the state-safe drinking water standard for PFAS.