News Center highlights UMaine research on PFAS in soil, farm crops
News Center Maine interviewed University of Maine graduate student Sonora Ortiz, who is leading a study on phytoremediation, the process by which plants draw a group of chemicals known as PFAS from soil; exploring which crops can safely absorb these toxic chemicals and seeking new solutions for the state’s contaminated farms. “The PFAS will accumulate mostly in the crop’s leaves and then in the stem and very little to none in the grain itself,” Ortiz said. Ortiz is one of several UMaine researchers conducting studies pertaining to PFAS at Sue Hunter’s farm in Unity.