The Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) is suing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, for allegedly failing to regulate the spread of sludge contaminated with PFAS.

MOFGA argues that the EPA failed to regulate the spread of sludge under the Clean Water Act, which directs the agency to identify pollutants in biosolids every two years.

The association is joining a lawsuit filed last month by ranchers in Johnson County, Texas, whose water and land were contaminated with PFAS after sludge was spread nearby.

It's a similar situation in Maine, where much of the PFAS contamination has been linked to the spread of sludge. MOFGA provides technical assistance to farms affected by the contamination, and has awarded more than $1.5 million in emergency relief funds to more than 50 farm families.

Maine regulators have approved new rules advocates said could offer a financial lifeline to Maine farms contaminated with toxic chemicals.

Under a measure authorized by the Maine Public Utilities Commission, the state will open a competitive bidding process to develop nearly 600,000 megawatts of new clean power, equal to 5% of Maine retail electricity sales in 2021.

The process will prioritized proposed developments sited on agricultural land tainted by per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS. The industrial chemicals have long been used in a wide range of products but have been linked to human health problems including cancer, kidney malfunction and low birth weight.

More than 50 Maine farms have been found to have unsafe levels of PFAS in water and soil. Some farms have had to stop selling produce, milk, eggs and meat from their land.