Michigan farmers are increasingly concerned about environmental contaminants – including PFAS and other chemicals – that may affect farmland, surface and groundwater, and public confidence in food safety. While protecting natural resources is a priority, farmers must not be held responsible for contamination they did not cause. Policies must ensure both environmental protection and farmer protection from unjust liability, cleanup costs, and loss of land or product value.
We support:
- Scientific, site-specific testing protocols and landowner consent prior to testing or sampling for environmental contaminants, with costs being covered by the state or federal agency.
- The acting agency being held liable for complete indemnification of current and future losses when contamination is not the landowner’s and/or farmer’s fault. This includes losses in commodity value, land value or access, business income, and crops, soil, or livestock determined to be contaminated.
- Funding for research and collaboration among agencies, universities, and the private sector to evaluate the health risks, develop mitigation strategies for environmental contaminants, and to develop regulatory limits.
- Use of peer-reviewed science to determine the level and extent of risks posed by environmental contaminants.
- Economic impact assessments before implementing any new regulations to determine potential costs and liabilities to affected communities.
- Legislation providing liability protection for farmers who comply with product labels, regulations, and Generally Accepted Agricultural and Management Practices (GAAMPs) for fertilizers and pesticides.
- Financial assistance for farms identified by the state to be contaminated with any environmental contaminants.
- State-funded research to identify safe levels of environmental contaminants in biosolids applied to farmland.
- Michigan-specific standards to ensure biosolids remain a viable and safe nutrient source without risk of soil contamination.
- Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development oversight in coordination with the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy and local governments of the disposal of moderately contaminated sediments on farmland.
- Funding for public knowledge on possible contaminants in locations of highest concern.