From nonstick cookware and disposable tableware to everyday items like toothbrushes, these oil- and water-repellent chemicals became widespread in the late 20th century. Today, communities across the country are grappling with the residue theyā€™ve left behind.

Maine has emerged as a national leader in responding to PFAS contamination, advancing policies aimed at protecting farms, ecosystems and public health. Researchers at the 91±¬ĮĻ are working to understand how PFAS moves through soil, crops and livestock; develop technologies to break it down; and design sustainable materials that could replace it in everyday products.

On this episode of ā€œThe Maine Questionā€ podcast, host Ron Lisnet speaks with 91±¬ĮĻ researchers Jean MacRae, Christina Murphy, Caroline Noblet and Rachel Schattman about how their work, spanning engineering, economics, agriculture and conservation biology, is helping communities confront PFAS and chart a cleaner path forward.

Listen to the podcast on , , , , or ā€œThe Maine Questionā€ website. 

What topics would you like to learn more about? What questions do you have for 91±¬ĮĻ experts? Email them to mainequestion@maine.edu.

But for the past two years, they have also been tracked, in real time, by an undergraduate student at the 91±¬ĮĻ.

As the state races to confront one of the most complex environmental crises in its history, Eddie Nachamie, a senior in 91±¬ĮĻā€™s Honors College, followed Maineā€™s PFAS response as it unfolded.

And he did it bill by bill, rule by rule, memo by memo.

Through his research, Nachamie found that Maineā€™s response to these chemicals ā€” certain levels of which may lead to cancer, immune system disorders and other health problems ā€” is the most robust of any state in the U.S.

Working under the guidance of Rachel Schattman, an associate professor of sustainable agriculture, Nachamie translated a fast-moving and confusing web of legislation and regulations into a clear, public-facing roadmap of how state policy evolved; and how it continues to change.

From class paper to national policy map

The project began in fall 2024 as a class paper for Schattmanā€™s sustainable food systems course. An ecology and environmental sciences major, Nachamie initially set out to understand why Maineā€™s approach to PFAS appeared different from other states, particularly in agriculture.

ā€œThere didnā€™t seem to be a unified response at the federal level,ā€ Nachamie said. ā€œAnd Maine was clearly out in front in terms of how aggressively it was regulating PFAS, especially when it came to farming.ā€

What began as a course assignment evolved into a comprehensive analysis of Maineā€™s PFAS regulatory framework, which will be made public in the coming weeks. Nachamie conducted interviews and worked closely with staff at the Maine Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry to compile and verify every PFAS-related law passed by the Maine Legislature.

Schattman said the scope and rigor of the work quickly exceeded what is typically expected at the undergraduate level.

ā€œEddie realized early on that this wasnā€™t just an academic exercise,ā€ Schattman said. ā€œMaineā€™s PFAS policies were changing in real time, and there was a real need for someone to step back and make sense of how all these pieces fit together ā€” not just for researchers, but for farmers, policymakers and the public.ā€

Maine at the forefront of PFAS policy

PFAS have been used widely in industrial and consumer products such as nonstick pans, takeout food containers and firefighting foam since the 1940s for their resistance to grease, oil, water and heat. These chemicals, however, can persist in the environment for hundreds of years and break down slowly, as well as pose health risks. They have been found in wastewater sewage that farmers in Maine previously used as fertilizer.

The turning point for Maineā€™s response, Nachamie believes, came in 2016 when PFAS contamination was discovered at a dairy farm in Arundel. The finding, he said, raised alarms about PFAS entering the food supply and marked a shift in how seriously the state viewed the threat.

ā€œThat was really the wake-up call,ā€ he said. ā€œOnce there was concern about PFAS in milk and dairy products, it forced a deeper investigation.ā€

Nachamieā€™s analysis spans the full scope of the stateā€™s response, including education and outreach, product limits, firefighting foam restrictions, sludge application bans, health thresholds, farmer assistance programs and long-term remediation strategies.

Maine national leader in PFAS statutes

The research highlights Maineā€™s emergence as a national leader in PFAS regulation. In earlier drafts, Nachamie compared all 50 states using a national PFAS policy database maintained by the nonprofit Safer States, supplemented with state agency records, and found that Maine has enacted more PFAS-related statutes and rules than any other state.

ā€œMaine, by far, has more PFAS legislation on the books than anywhere else,ā€ he said, noting that he relied on a national PFAS policy database maintained by the nonprofit Safer States, along with state agency records. ā€œIn terms of rulemaking, itā€™s not even close.ā€

While awareness grew after 2016, Nachamie found that the most significant legislative activity followed several years later.

ā€œ2021 and 2022 were really the big years,ā€ he said. ā€œThatā€™s when we started to see a wave of PFAS bills moving through the Legislature.ā€

Among the most consequential policies, Nachamie points to Maineā€™s phased ban on products containing intentionally added PFAS, ban on spreading sludge on farmland, and creation of a PFAS fund for affected farmers.

ā€œIf there are three things Maine has done that I think other states should look at, itā€™s those,ā€ Nachamie said.

Understanding the science and the stakes

Yet his research also underscores the disconnect that still exists between policy and public understanding. PFAS chemistry remains poorly understood outside regulatory and scientific circles, and Nachamie said confusion is common.

ā€œA lot of people think Iā€™m talking about microplastics,ā€ he said. ā€œTheyā€™re not the same thing, but that misunderstanding comes up all the time.ā€

Even as Maine has moved aggressively, uncertainty continues to ripple across rural communities, small towns and state agencies tasked with protecting public health. With federal standards in flux and legal challenges looming, Nachamie said the burden increasingly falls on states to act.

ā€œThe federal landscape changed dramatically while I was working on this,ā€ he said. ā€œThatā€™s part of what drew me to the project in the first place.ā€

Now in his final year at 91±¬ĮĻ, Nachamie has expanded his research into an honors project examining PFAS contamination in drinking water at Maine schools. Inspired by a similar study published last year in New Hampshire, his work explores whether PFAS in school drinking water may originate from sources such as floor waxes and cleaning products.

That kind of applied, outward-facing work is at the core of the 91±¬ĮĻ Honors College, which encourages scholarship that reaches beyond the classroom and into local, regional and even national communities.  

ā€œHonors students are challenged to take what theyā€™re learning at the university and use it to make a meaningful impact in the world around them,ā€ said Ellen Weinauer, dean of the 91±¬ĮĻ Honors College. ā€œEddieā€™s work is a powerful example of how undergraduate research can contribute to conversations that matter not just on campus, but across the entire state and beyond.ā€

Contact: David Nordman, david.nordman@maine.edu

In this talk, 91±¬ĮĻ faculty Caroline Noblet and Dianne Kopec will explore how people in rural Maine, who possess a long heritage of fishing and hunting, are navigating impacts from environmental contamination, particularly by a group of chemicals known as PFAS. Two surveys conducted in collaboration with Maineā€™s Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, one with Maine fishing license holders and another with Maine hunting license holders, allowed the research team to conduct an in-depth exploration of how people who hunt and fish in Maine are processing information about consumption advisories, and potentially changing their behaviors.

Noblet is an associate professor in the 91±¬ĮĻ School of Economics. Her current PFAS work focuses on how Maine residents perceive PFAS contamination ā€” particularly in fish and game ā€” and how messaging can influence environmental and consumption decisions. Kopec is a research fellow at the Mitchell Center. Her research examines how ecology and behavior influence an organismā€™s exposure to toxic contaminants in aquatic ecosystems.

All talks in the Mitchell Centerā€™s Sustainability Talk series are free and are offered both remotely via Zoom and in person at 107 Norman Smith Hall.Registration is required to attend remotely; to register and receive connection information, see the event webpage.

To request a reasonable accommodation, contact Ruth Hallsworth, 207.581.3196; hallsworth@maine.edu.

In a study published in , 91±¬ĮĻ researchers show the different ways in which specific produce and crops take up PFAS, often referred to as ā€œforever chemicals,ā€ from contaminated soil.Ģż

PFAS have been used widely in industrial and consumer products such as nonstick pans, takeout food containers, firefighting foam and certain personal care products since the 1940s for their resistance to grease, oil, water and heat. These chemicals, however, can persist in the environment for hundreds of years, break down slowly and pose health risks. Current research suggests that exposure to certain levels of some PFAS may lead to immune system disorders, thyroid hormone disruption, cancer and other adverse health outcomes. 

Alex Scearce, a Ph.D. student in ecology and environmental sciences at 91±¬ĮĻ who led the study, and her colleagues hope their findings can help policymakers and producers further prevent the spread of these toxic chemicals in food systems.

ā€œThis study shows that there is no one-size-fits-all recommendation or policy for farmers dealing with PFAS contamination. The crop physiology, PFAS compounds present in the soil, mode of contamination, time since contamination, soil characteristics and management practices all shape PFAS uptake into crops,ā€ said Scearce. ā€œThis is why ongoing PFAS research is important ā€” because we know these factors are affecting the results we see, but we still lack clarity on how they play out in a real agricultural operation when theyā€™re interacting.ā€

The study is one of many examples of collaborative PFAS research and outreach projects as part of the university-wide efforts to quickly and effectively address solutions for forever chemicals. Early support from American Farmland Trust helped Scearce and 91±¬ĮĻ faculty secure additional funding and begin interdisciplinary, experimental research in less time. 

ā€œAs a nationally connected non-profit organization taking a holistic approach to agriculture, we work at the interface of protecting farmland, keeping farmers and ranchers who manage that land working and promoting sound agricultural systems. PFAS are a critical challenge to that entire system. American Farmland Trust quickly identified 91±¬ĮĻ researchers as strong partners in investigating how farmers in Maine and beyond can respond to the challenge,ā€ said Bianca Moebius-Clune, AFT national director of climate and soil health. ā€œThe funding provided to the 91±¬ĮĻ is unique ā€” the intention was specifically to jumpstart research that will be directly relevant to farmers making decisions about their PFAS impacted land.ā€

Working out of 91±¬ĮĻ Cooperative Extensionā€™s Diagnostic and Research Laboratory in Orono, Scearce and her colleagues used three types of plants ā€”  lettuce, tomato and tall fescue, a low turf grass used as livestock feed ā€” to evaluate how they take up PFAS from the soil. These plants were grown using soil that was intentionally mixed with four types of PFAS and tested for four to six weeks. They examined the types and quantities of PFAS each crop took up, as well as where in the plants they were found.

On average, the quantity and types of PFAS each crop took up and where they were located within the plant were largely determined by the chemical composition of these pollutants, particularly the length of their carbon atom chains, known as the chain length. 

Long-chain PFAS were often more concentrated in the roots. These types of PFAS, which were phased out of new product development a decade ago, are typically known to be more toxic and break down more slowly but are less mobile. Meanwhile, higher concentrations of short-chain PFAS were typically found in the leaves and fruits ā€” the edible portions of each plant tested in the study. These types of PFAS, which were created as a less-toxic replacement for long-chain PFAS, break down faster but are more mobile. The exception to this pattern was noted in lettuce, which contained higher concentrations of both longer and shorter-chain PFAS in their leaves than in their roots. 

ā€œIt is expensive to test for PFAS, and the cost of testing is normally out of reach for many farmers. We hope that by testing crops that Maine farmers grow for sale, we can help show which crops are likely to be ā€˜high riskā€™ versus those that are ā€˜low riskā€™. While our study is not the end of the story, it starts to provide farmers with an idea of what they can grow if their soils are contaminated with specific types of PFAS,ā€ said Rachel Schattman, Scearceā€™s advisor, study co-author and associate professor of sustainable agriculture at 91±¬ĮĻ. 

For three of the four types of PFAS tested, the highest concentrations were found in tall fescue, followed by lettuce and tomatoes. However, concentrations of one type of chemical called perfluorobutanoate (PFBA), a short-chain PFAS linked to thyroid and liver issues in animals, were the highest by far in tomato fruits, followed by tall fescue and lettuce.  

The study also highlights how certain farming methods like intercropping ā€” planting multiple crops in the same area ā€” arenā€™t reliable solutions for preventing the uptake of PFAS by crops, or at least not by these crops. In every intercropped treatment tested, uptake was increased into the edible portion, with the exception of some mitigation of concentrations in the tomato fruits when they were planted alongside lettuce. 

“Reducing risk of contamination via careful crop selection and planting strategies are of interest to growers because these approaches, known as phytomanagement, may allow farmers to sustain food production on contaminated land. This study showed that planting strategies and species do matter, but there is more research needed on what species and what combinations are effective,ā€ said Scearce.Ģż

In addition to Scearce and Schattman, other study authors include Jean MacRae; associate professor of civil and environmental engineering; Yong-Jiang Zhang, former associate professor of applied plant physiology; Caleb Goossen from the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, and Kylie Holt from the School of Life Sciences at the University of Hawai’i Mānoa. 

This work received funding and support from American Farmland Trust, the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, the Maine Farmland Trust and the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture through the Maine Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station. 

Story by former news intern Christina Wallace.

Contact: Marcus Wolf, 207.581.3721; marcus.wolf@maine.edu

Titled ā€œPFAS on Maine Farms: How Agricultural Research is Helping Farmers, Our Food, and Our Health,ā€ Mallory, professor in the School of Food and Agriculture and 91±¬ĮĻ Cooperative Extension specialist, discussed how these chemicals move through soil, crops and livestock and what that means for the stateā€™s farming communities.

ā€œWe are very concerned about the health risks for farmers and for farm workers, because of where they work and where they live, they’re exposed to more PFAS,ā€ Mallory said.

Her work on how the PFAS compound perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) accumulates in livestock feed was recently awarded one of five grants from the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry PFAS Fund.

More information on these chemicals is available through , the and the . 

The 91±¬ĮĻ awards, which are directed to faculty members associated with the universityā€™s Maine Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station (MAFES),91±¬ĮĻ Cooperative Extension and Maine College of Engineering and Computing, constitute five of the seven PFAS-related funded projects on April 29.

According to DACF, PFAS has impacted 90 Maine farms to varying degrees. It can cycle through soil, water, plants, animals and humans once released into the environment. Health effects linked to PFAS exposure include decreased vaccine response, increased cholesterol levels, reduced infant and fetal growth, heightened risk of certain cancers and pregnancy complications.

ā€œThe stateā€™s investment fortifies our commitment to protect and inform Mainers through research and its application,ā€ said 91±¬ĮĻ President Joan Ferrini-Mundy. ā€œIn a highly competitive selection process, the state chose five research projects proposed by our faculty that will help us detect PFAS in soil, understand how it is absorbed by plants and animals and remediate its presence on Maine farms.ā€ 

“By investing in our research, the state has once again proven its confidence in 91±¬ĮĻ research and its commitment to protecting the health and wellbeing of all Mainersā€ said Diane Rowland, dean of the College of Earth, Life, and Health Sciences and director of MAFES. “We lead Maine in PFAS research and will leverage additional funding sources to form a true partnership with the state, one that is grounded in the needs of Maine’s agricultural sector.” 

Ling Li, associate professor of sustainable bioenergy systems in the School of Forest Resources, received $467,240 for her research on mixing biochar in soil to reduce PFAS bioaccumulation in edible parts of vegetable crops, such as lettuce and tomatoes. Li aims to develop actionable solutions for farmers to manage contaminated soils. The project will develop guidance on how much biochar they would need to use in their soil and how often it would need to be reapplied.

Ellen Mallory, professor in the School of Food and Agriculture and 91±¬ĮĻ Extension specialist, received $499,995 for her research on how the PFAS compound perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) accumulates in livestock feed. Mallory aims to understand more about how certain soil compounds influence PFOS uptake from the soil to human food systems through products such as milk and meat. 

Sharmila Mukhopadhyay, director of the Frontier Institute for Research in Sensor Technologies and professor of mechanical engineering, received $496,432 for her work on developing rapid PFAS-detecting sensors. Mukhopadhyayā€™s device could streamline PFAS detection on farms by allowing farmers to test their soil for the chemical onsite, a process that currently can take over a week and cost hundreds of dollars.

Glenda Pereira Parente, assistant professor of animal science in the School of Food and Agriculture and 91±¬ĮĻ Extension dairy specialist, received $499,989 to guide PFAS mitigation strategies for livestock by modeling how it bioaccumulates. Parente will focus on how PFAS moves through the bodies of dairy sheep and lambs during gestation, lactation and depuration, as well as the effects of feeding management practices during the weaning phase.

Xiaoxiao Zhao, assistant professor of materials science and engineering, received $284,869 for his research on creating energy-efficient technology to break down PFAS in soil without harming soil health. Zhaoā€™s project will use activated carbon coated on a plasma electrode to capture PFAS in soil, a method that would break the stubborn bonds that earned PFAS the nickname ā€œforever chemicals,ā€ instead of trapping it like current methods, and refresh the soilā€™s ability to capture it.

These researchers are among many 91±¬ĮĻ faculty members working together on a variety of PFAS research projects and outreach as part of the university-wide efforts to quickly and effectively address solutions for forever chemicals.

Additional information is available on the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry PFAS Fund .Ģż

Contact: Ashley Yates; ashley.depew@maine.edu

One researcher who has become adept at helping people navigate the growing environmental crisis is Caroline Noblet, associate professor of economics and member of the 91±¬ĮĻ Senator George J. Mitchell Centerā€™s PFAS Research Initiative. 

Noblet is a behavioral environmental economist, which means she has dedicated her career to studying why people make the choices they make about the environment, and what context influences those choices. She is the only social scientist involved in the Mitchell Centerā€™s PFAS Research Initiative, and has been a leader in the burgeoning research exploring how best to talk to the public about these so-called ā€œforever chemicalsā€ in a way that helps people make more informed choices. 

Noblet and her Mitchell Center colleagues are among many 91±¬ĮĻ faculty members working together on a variety of PFAS research projects and outreach efforts as part of the university-wide PFAS+ Initiative. That initiative builds on efforts by 91±¬ĮĻ Cooperative Extension and Mitchell Centerā€™s initiative to provide communities with important information regarding PFAS. Additionally, there are many ongoing collaborative projects across 91±¬ĮĻ engaged in the assessment, impact and mitigation of these chemicals.

As Noblet continues working on PFAS issues through research, media appearances and policy work along with her team at the Mitchell Centerā€™s PFAS Research Initiative, she said that there is one main thing to keep in mind: researchers have to be honest about what they do and donā€™t yet know about PFAS in order to maintain the publicā€™s trust while tackling the PFAS crisis in Maine and beyond.

Nobletā€™s background

Noblet is a native Mainer and a graduate of Gardiner Area High School. In college, she studied economics, but had a love for the environment from back when she was a little girl. 

ā€œI had the chance to travel a lot as a kid. I realized that Maine is a cool and special place and the natural environment is something I really cared about,ā€ she said.

Noblet returned to Maine for her graduate studies at 91±¬ĮĻ, where she worked with her longtime mentor Mario Teisl, a professor of economics, studying the impact of labels on economic choices. She became fascinated by behavioral economics.  

ā€œWhen it’s April and itā€™s 60 degrees, weā€™re all in shorts and weā€™re like, ā€˜Woohoo!ā€™ Whereas if itā€™s maybe September and it gets down to 60 degrees, weā€™re putting our jacket on because we had summer of warm weather,ā€ Noblet said. ā€œThatā€™s what I mean by context. Economics has all sorts of wonderful, longstanding theories saying ā€˜People will behave this way,ā€™ but what weā€™ve learned with behavioral economics is that people will behave differently depending on the context that theyā€™re in. Itā€™s our job to understand when they will change their behavior.ā€

Noblet became a faculty member at 91±¬ĮĻ in 2007. She combined her passion for the environment with her academic expertise in behavioral economics to study a wide range of topics, from aquaculture to renewable energy. 

She teaches various economics classes at both the undergraduate and graduate level. Through being a teacher, Noblet learned the power of making a problem feel relevant by providing real-world examples that people can connect to. In her lectures, she uses economic theories like status quo bias to understand the housing market right now, or the tragedy of the commons to understand how resources are overused in the worldā€™s oceans.

ā€œMy teaching philosophy is always to help people make connections to the real world,ā€ Noblet said. ā€œI don’t expect them to be behavioral economics or experimental economists, but I do expect them to be engaged citizens.ā€

Taking up the gauntlet of PFAS

In 2020, the state of Maine asked whether the Mitchell Center could form an interdisciplinary team to address a variety of PFAS issues. The Mitchell Center was a natural choice given their focus on both sustainability and interdisciplinary research. David Hart, director of the Mitchell Center, brought together researchers from across 91±¬ĮĻ, including engineers, ecologists and groundwater hydrologists, to form the PFAS Research Initiative.Ģż

One of the scientists he reached out to was Noblet. Her social science background made her unique not just on her team, but the broader field of PFAS research as well. Hart saw Nobletā€™s expertise in behavioral economics as essential to figuring out public perceptions of PFAS risks, and how to shape policies for reducing those risks. 

Noblet eagerly accepted the invitation.

ā€œOne of the reasons that I love and appreciate the Mitchell Center is the people who are similarly drawn to that interdisciplinary approach are really awesome researchers who want to marry specialized skill sets with other ones,ā€ Noblet said. ā€œMost of the problems are bigger and badder than what my skill sets can handle. I donā€™t have the hubris to think I can solve these problems myself.ā€

Noblet said that the team has done great work since forming, including publishing a regarding PFAS contamination for a Maine audience, and a full team paper on lessons learned in Maine for an academic audience in , as well as ongoing projects. 

She said their research shows that the way PFAS is discussed matters enormously for public perception. People learning about PFAS, as is often true of many environmental problems, often want to blame someone. If people spend all their time figuring out who to blame, however, they are less likely to work towards finding a solution to the problem. 

ā€œWhat if we remind people you have used and benefitted from PFAS?ā€ Noblet said. ā€œI like nonstick pans and rugs and couches that donā€™t let stains sink in. What if we talk about it that way? Does that change peopleā€™s willingness to contribute financially or otherwise to the problem?ā€ 

Communicating the science

Between Nobletā€™s background in behavioral economics and her experience with PFAS, she has thought a lot about how the issue should be approached when talking to the public. She also drew on her experience during the COVID-19 pandemic, observing how difficult it can be for the public to process new information when an issue is complex.

ā€œWeā€™re asked to take in new information that’s inconsistent with old information, thatā€™s really hard,ā€ Noblet said. ā€œItā€™s asking for a level of trust. Thatā€™s where I start from.ā€

Noblet said that when she discusses PFAS publicly, she is already at an advantage because 91±¬ĮĻ has long been considered a trusted source of information for residents statewide. Still, she is conscious of maintaining that trust through the way she talks about uncertainty. 

ā€œI also say it right up front: We donā€™t know what we donā€™t know about PFAS yet,ā€ Noblet said. ā€œI understand that it is incredibly frustrating to be told one day based on our standards your water is fine, and then to be told however much time later it actually doesnā€™t meet the standards anymore and youā€™re going to need to invest in a filter system. Telling people right up front that things are going to shift is a really important part of the puzzle.ā€

Her approach has garnered her media coverage. She recently appeared on the podcast Resources Radio by Resources for the Future, one of the top environmental economics think tanks in the world, . Daniel Raimi, who hosted the episode, said that Noblet impressed him with her aptitude.Ģż

ā€œBased on my interview with Caroline, I think she is a very effective communicator about PFAS,ā€ Raimi said. ā€œIt’s a very complex topic and she makes it easy for a wide range of folks to understand the potential environmental and human health risks of PFAS.ā€

Her colleagues at the Mitchell Center have been equally impressed. 

ā€œCaroline excels in her ability to communicate about complicated issues like PFAS,ā€ Hart said. ā€œShe not only has an outstanding understanding of the technical details, she brings this amazing combination of passion, warmth and humility to the discussion. If I could only give new researchers one bit of advice on effective communication, it would be to learn from Carolineā€™s podcast ā€” sheā€™s at the top of her game!ā€ 

For Noblet, the appearance was a point of pride as well. She said she uses Resources Radio podcasts in her classes, linking various episodes to topics in the syllabus to give students a different engaging way to learn more from experts in the field. 

ā€œIt was a pretty smiley moment when I got to add that one of mine on the syllabus this year,ā€ Noblet said.

Teaching students how to communicate

As the consummate teacher she is, Noblet has also made it her mission to teach her students how to communicate their research as well. She makes sure that her students are involved outside of 91±¬ĮĻ. Noblet herself collaborates closely with partners at the Maine Departments of Environmental Protection and Inland Fisheries and Wildlife to work on PFAS issues.

ā€œThatā€™s another really important part of the communication puzzle: did you do this in a silo, sitting in your university office, or did you talk to some people working in this space already?ā€ Noblet said.

Molly Shea, who recently completed her undergraduate degree, worked on the Maine Policy Review paper about Mainersā€™ preferences for addressing PFAS with Noblet and graduate student Charity Zimmerman. She also presented at the 2023 91±¬ĮĻ Student Symposium about her work at the PFAS Research Initiative studying landfills and the hidden cost of PFAS. 

Shea said that Noblet fostered a ā€œpositive and nurturing research environmentā€ for her students.

ā€œHer exceptional working relationships with peers and stakeholders are a testament to her professionalism, and brilliance in the field. She goes above and beyond to create opportunities for growth, whether it’s encouraging [students] to present at conferences, apply for internships or pursue other avenues for personal and professional development,ā€ Shea said. ā€œDr. Noblet not only imparts her extensive knowledge and expertise, but also instills in her students a sense of confidence and ambition that extends beyond the confines of the academic setting.ā€

Shea is back at 91±¬ĮĻ to pursue a graduate degree and continue studying PFAS. She was awarded a graduate fellowship with the National Science Foundation’s that funds her graduate research. Her work focuses on how communication impacts the public perception of PFAS. 

Noblet said that Shea, herself, is exceptional. 

ā€œShe herself is an excellent communicator,ā€ Noblet said. ā€œWe can pretend I taught her something about that.ā€

Contact: Ruth Hallsworth, hallsworth@maine.eduĢż