Chemical contamination has made it into two more Maine waterways in concentrations great enough to pose danger to people eating the fish they catch.
Testing in Sandy Stream in Freedom, Knox and Unity, and in the Sebasticook River in Winslow, found elevated levels of the toxic chemical perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) in fish tissue samples, according to the Maine Center for Disease Control & Prevention.
📍 Maine fish consumption advisory
| Area | Waterbody | Consumption Advisory† |
|---|---|---|
| Freedom, Knox, Unity | Sandy Stream from Route 137 in Freedom to Stevens Road in Unity. | Consume no more than 5 meals per year of any fish species. |
| Freedom, Knox, Unity | Sandy Stream from Stevens Road in Unity to the confluence with Halfmoon Stream. | Do Not Eat any fish species. |
| Freedom, Knox, Unity | Sandy Stream from the confluence with Halfmoon Stream to Unity Pond. | Consume no more than 5 meals per year of smallmouth bass. |
| Winslow | Sebastiocok River from Benton Falls in Benton to the Kennebec River. | Consume no more than 1 meal per month of any fish species. |
PFOS is one of the many types perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. The man-made chemicals, which are excellent at repelling water, stains and grease, have been used for decades in a wide variety of consumer products, including nonstick cookware, carpeting and upholstery, clothing and food packaging. It is also used in firefighting foam.
Because they are not easily broken down in the environment or the human body, PFAS are known as “forever chemicals.” Research has linked PFAS to adverse health affects.
The substances have been detected in sewage sludge, which was commonly used as fertilizer on Maine farms in the 1990s and 2000s. In recent years, dozens of farms, particularly in central Maine, were found to be contaminated.
From the farms, the the toxic chemicals have run into waterways. The new advisory brings the total number of Maine water bodies with a freshwater consumption advisory to 28, the Maine CDC said.
