Every positive step we can take to get PFAS out of our lives is an important one. Because once PFAS is born, it's around forever.
That's something that became very personal for KEEN impact maker and artist Max Romey recently when he took a trip back to his birthplace in Maine to learn about PFAS contamination in the farmland around his childhood home and meet an organization that’s working with farmers to take steps to rectify things: Maine Farmland Trust.
We’re in our second year of partnering with Maine Farmland Trust, and we knew Max would be the perfect person to represent KEEN at the Trust’s annual meeting. Read more to find out how farmers are fighting PFAS and why Max says the experience is “lodged in my brain and heart.”
What Were You Doing in Maine?
I joined The Maine Farmland Trust annual meeting, which happened to be their 25-year anniversary. But it was extra interesting because a little bit more than 25 years ago, I was born. Almost in that exact spot. It was really interesting to return to these familiar places but learn about an organization that has been fighting for farmland and trying to rectify mistakes that were made around the time that I was born. So, it was kind of a strange but also beautiful moment.
Can You Tell Us More About Maine Farmland Trust?
Maine Farmland Trust is an amazing organization focused on protecting farmland, and also the communities and the people and the livelihoods and the way of life. It is a really holistic organization that sees farmland as the foundation that really keeps a lot of this community up and running, and they work to protect that in a whole bunch of different ways, including around PFAS.
"PFAS isn't just something found in shoes. It's in the water. It's in our food. It's in the land. And only once it's gone from all of that can it be gone from all of us."
A lot of farmland has been contaminated with PFAS. It happens in a variety of ways – most recently, or maybe most extensively, through treated wastewater. Sludge is what they call it. It's basically the stuff that comes out of the end of the sewer and they treat it. It's full of all kinds of nutrients, but it's also full of PFAS.
PFAS are in tons of products. They're in tons of everything. And a lot of that ends up in the wastewater and ends up in this place. People thought that they were solving two problems in one. They got rid of this sludge and also the farmers got some pretty high nitrogen fertilizer. But what was actually happening is these farms were being poisoned, basically with PFAS. And so that happened in Maine, but it also happens all over the country. One of the big differences is the Maine Farmland Trust is really proactive in supporting the community and the farmers, and kind of heal and try to rectify a lot of that by focusing on the land itself.
KEEN being PFAS free, and really being a leader in this movement, donates to the Maine Farmland Trust to support the great work that they do. Because PFAS isn't just something found in shoes. It's in the water. It's in our food. It's in the land. And only once it's gone from all of that can it be gone from all of us.
It was so cool to see all these farmers and supporters in one place. While sipping homemade, fresh-pressed local apple cider.
What Was Your Biggest Takeaway from the Experience?
I think one of my biggest takeaways was how PFAS are called forever chemicals in a lot of ways. And I think this trip to Maine really reminded me of justice and what that means. You know, a place where I was born is still fighting a lot of the same battles and it's just as bad of a problem. Maine is doing a better job than most. A lot of places have these chemicals in there, but they don't necessarily recognize it. They don't test for it, or they don't support the farmers who do find out that their land has been contaminated. Maine Farmland Trust has been doing an incredible job with that.
How Can Folks Get Involved and Help?
If people are in Maine, there are lots of great resources. Maine Farmland Trust is a really great example and definitely worth checking out their website and a lot of the cool programs they have going on. But Maine isn't the only state that does things like this. There are lots of incredible farmland trusts out there or organizations working with a focus on the land. It could be a great opportunity to volunteer or get engaged. Farming is hard to do right now. And being part of a community that supports healthy land and healthy farms, it really pays back in dividends because those farms can help support a community back.
They invited some local partner farms to make an impromptu farmers market and the produce was gorgeous! It was really fun to eat vegetables knowing how much care and thought has been put into them.
What KEEN Shoes Were You Wearing?
I was wearing a pair of Targhee IV hiking shoes. It means even more to me now that all KEEN shoes are PFAS Free. With every step that I take, I know that those steps are going in the right direction, which is really important.
Anything Else to Share?
I learned that there's some really hopeful stories out there. PFAS seems so scary, and it seems like it's all sad stories, but there's a ton of hope out there. And it’s all possible because of these small little local actions, which is just so, so cool.
