Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID 2021ME001PFAS

Developing and Deploying a Risk Framework for PFAS Management in Rural America: Connecting Predictive Models of PFAS Contamination with Risk Perceptions to Guide Management Decisions

Institute: Maine
USGS Grant Number:
Year Established: 2021 Start Date: 2021-09-01 End Date: 2024-08-31
Total Federal Funds: $250,000 Total Non-Federal Funds: $257,394

Principal Investigators: Caroline L. Noblet

Project Summary: This proposal uses an integrated risk framework to quantify and communicate the threat of PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) contamination to the resilience and livelihoods of rural areas. To achieve this goal, we propose a collaborative, integrated, interdisciplinary research project to address three objectives: 1) identify factors that predict PFAS fate and transport near biosolids agricultural application areas to develop vulnerability models for groundwater (GW) resources; 2) determine barriers to scientific information uptake and implementation of management strategies; and 3) provide a research blueprint for replication of the approach to benefit PFAS-impacted rural communities.