MFT operates PFAS Emergency Releif Fund to support impacted farmers

\n\nDepartment Office/Division/Program: | DACF, Office ofthe Commissioner, PFAS Fund\n\nDepartment Contract Administrator or | Beth Valentine\nGrant Coordinator:\n(If applicable) Department Reference\n\n#\nAmount:\n1A 20240227*2344\n(Contract/Amendment/Grant) $ 5,700,000 Advantage CT /RQS # | CT 01A 20240 3\nCONTRACT |Proposed Start Date: | 3/20/2024 Proposed End Date: | 3/31/2027\n\nOriginal Start Date: Effective Date:\nAuENDuENN Previous End Date: New End Date:\nGRANT Project Start Date: Grant Start Date:\nProject End Date: Grant End Date:\n\nVendor/Provider/Grantee Name, | Maine Farmland Trust\nCity, State: | 97 Main Street, Belfast, ME 04915\nMFT operates aPFAS Emergency Relief Fund to support PFAS-\nBrief Description of | impacted farmers. As a non-profit, MFT can provide financial support\nGoods/Services/Grant: | to impacted farms more quickly than DACF\u2019s Income Replacement\nand/or Farm Viability Fund programs can.\n\nPART Il: J USTIFICATION FOR VENDOR SELECTION\n\nCheck

the box below for the justification(s) that applies to this request. (Check all that apply.)\noO A. Competitive Process oO G. Grant\n\nDO B. Amendment OD H. State Statute/Agency Directed\nC. Single Source/Unique Vendor DO I. Federal Agency Directed\n\nOo D. Proprietary/Copyright/P atents DO J. Willing and Qualified\n\nOo E. Emergency Oo K. Client Choice\n\nOo F. University Cooperative Project L. Other Authorization\n\nREV 01/23/2024 Page 1of3\n" "DocusSign Envelope ID: C411AF2A-7144-4661-B7AD-21C2975FB343\nProcurement] ustification Form (PJ F)\n\nPlease respond to ALL of the questions in the following sections.\nPART Ill: SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION\n\nl. Provide a more detailed description and explain the need for the goods, services or grantto\nsupplementtthe response in Part.\n\nPer- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are synthetic chemicals that repel oil, grease, water, and heat. PFAS are\nwidespread and persistent in the environment. Farmland containing PFAS can contaminate soils, water, crops, and\nlivestock to the extent thattthey are unsafe for human consumption (and, in the case of forage crops, unsafe for feeding\nlivestock).\n\nDACEF\u2019s Income Replacement Program\n\nThe discovery of PFAS contamination at a M aine farm is devastating. The result isthe immediate closure of the\nbusiness and income loss because farms may not sell their products commercially if they are adulterated by this\ncontaminant. This is a stressful time for producers who do not know what the future holds nor how they will survive\neconomically.\n\nGiven current legislative funding to DACF for farmer support, the Department is in the position to offer economic aid\nto farmers with confirmed contamination at their farms and who have ceased selling most or all their products\ncommercially. DACF will provide financial support to these farms potentially equivalent to up to two years of lost\ngross income.\n\nDACF\u2019s Income Replacement Program is guided by the Maine DACF Producer PFAS Income Replacement policy\ndocument dated October 13, 2023, as may be updated from time to time, and by rule 01-001 C.M..R. ch. 401 (2024).\n\nDACEF\u2019s Farm Viability Program\n\nDespite the challenges, many PFAS-impacted farmers would like to pursue farming on their land. Experience with\ncontaminated farms in M aine has shown that it is possible to depurate livestock over time with clean water, feed, and\naccess to PFAS-free grazing fields (as needed). Emerging data also indicates that some crops appear to tolerate PFAS\nsoils and may not contain PFAS at levels of concern for human consumption.\n\nProducers need financial assistance (and time) to make the investments to shift their operations. For instance, a\n\nlivestock owner may need to secure a steady supply of clean feed. A produce farmer may need to purchase clean soil\nfor a greenhouse, new seed, or other PFAS-free inputs to transition to safe crops. Other infrastructure investments or\nequipment purchases may also need to be made to plant, irrigate, harvest, or store these inputs and ultimate products.\n\nDACF\u2019s Farm Viability Program is guided by the M aine Farm V iability Fund policy document dated October 11, 2023,\nas may be updated from time to time, and by rules 01-001 C.M.R. ch. 400, 402-404 (2024).\n\nTime is of the Essence\n\nWhen PFAS was discovered at multiple farms across M aine in early 2022, both DACF and the nonprofit community\nmounted robust responses. DACF established the PFAS Response Program within the Bureau of Agriculture, Food and\nRural Resources and, later, the PFAS Fund in the Commissioner\u2019s Office. Atthe same time, Maine Farmland Trust\n(MFT) and the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners A ssociation (MOFGA) jointly established aPFAS Emergency\nFund. As nonprofit organizations, MFT andMOFGA can react much more nimbly than DACF and, over the past two\nplus years, have provided critical and timely financial assistanceto PFAS-impacted commercial farmers. W hen\npayments