60NANB24D127

Purpose: The University of Maine (UMaine) Analytical Laboratory and Soil Testing Service (Maine Analytical Laboratory) is a critical component of research infrastructure, teaching, and services across the Northeast.

It provides faculty, consulting firms, laboratories, state agencies, agricultural businesses, and homeowners reliable data on the physical and chemical properties of soil, manure, compost, plant tissue, and related materials on which to base decisions related to natural resources.

It also provides researchers necessary tools to advance discovery in agriculture, forestry, earth science, ecology, and related fields.

The stakeholders rely on robust and trustworthy data, which requires modern preparation equipment and analytical instrumentation.

This project provides these tools to modernize the laboratory and thereby facilitate the high volume of high-quality analyses performed by the lab year after year.

Activities to be performed: As part of this project we plan to renovate or utilize the following spaces, totaling ~6839 square feet, of which ~5206 square feet will undergo renovation.

Expected outcomes: With modernization, the Maine Analytical Laboratory will strengthen its position as a leader in research, teaching, and services in the Northeast and nationally.

The new capacity of this laboratory will:

* Bolster Maine's ability to drive PFAS research and leadership;

* Enable our researchers to carry out the work that addresses current and future issues such as food insecurity, climate change, and building local economies to be resilient and adaptable in the face of global change;

* Support conservation efforts and workforce training needed by state agencies and federal partners including USDA Rural Development and the Natural Resources Conservation Service; and

* Improve support for the $681M agricultural industry in Maine.

Intended beneficiaries: The Maine Analytical Laboratory is the backbone of much of the research done by nearly 90 faculty supported by the Maine Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station, and numerous others in colleges across UMaine and the Northeast.

In recent years, a total of over 20,000 standard soil tests were run, including over 11,000 from Maine, for over 3500 customers.

The Maine Analytical Laboratory is the most comprehensive lab of its type in New England, providing many critical soil, plant, compost, and manure testing services that are not available in labs in neighboring states.

We must ensure this critical service modernizes and grows to meet the needs of the region and the nation, to support resilience and adaptation in a changing world.

In light of the current and future initiatives related to addressing environmental and climate-related issues, we must maintain high-quality analytical capacity.

Subrecipient activities: None.

University Of Maine System

11.617 - Congressionally-Identified Projects

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) [DOC]

Orono, Maine 04469-5717 United States

Single Zip Code

None