A Yale-led research team has proposed a less expensive - and more environmentally friendly - method for removing certain "forever chemicals" from millions of acres of farmland in the United States and around the world.
The new process, which is based on data from agricultural sites in Maine. They say it has the potential to address two connected environmental challenges: remediating per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that have contaminated agricultural land for decades and scaling up the use of enhanced weathering to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
Just as important, the new approach allows previously contaminated cropland to once again be used for an agricultural purpose - unlike current remediation methods.
"There is an obvious need for new tools to help farmers affected by 'forever chemicals' contamination," said Noah Planavsky, a professor of Earth and planetary science in Yale's Faculty of Arts and Sciences and the son and brother of farmers. He is also a faculty member of the Yale Center for Natural Carbon Capture and principal investigator for a new study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences which describes the new method.
"We outline a path that allows farmers to continue to work their land while restoring soil health," Planavsky said.
The research was supported by Yale Planetary Solutions (YPS), a campus-wide initiative that helps advance novel and impactful projects tackling environmental challenges, and Yale Ventures, the university's hub for innovation and entrepreneurship.
PFAS, also known as "forever chemicals," are a class of toxic, man-made chemicals that have been used for decades in hundreds of products, from dental floss and lipstick to frying pans and pizza boxes. PFAS are ubiquitous in the United States, having made their way into groundwater and soil, and then eventually croplands. Only in recent years have scientists begun to understand the full scope of PFAS contamination not just nationally but worldwide.
"Though this study is U.S.-focused, based on the available data, PFAS are a challenge globally," said Jake Thompson, an associate researcher in the Planavsky Lab and first author of the study. He is a postdoctoral researcher in Yale's Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences.
