Maine's new law requires annual PFAS monitoring and public reporting for landfill leachate, mandates testing of nearby private wells upon request, and strengthens protections for groundwater and surface waters from PFAS contamination.

HF 4844, passed as part of HF 3911, aims to enhance natural resources management in Minnesota, focusing on the control of domestic hogs and other restricted species. It proposes amendments and new provisions to prohibit the release of domestic hogs, clarify agency jurisdiction, establish civil penalties for violations and mandate outreach efforts.

California will begin allowing an alternative burial method known as human composting in 2027. Assembly Bill 351 will create a state regulatory process for natural organic reduction, a method in which human remains naturally decompose over a 30-to-45-day period after being placed in a steel vessel and buried in wood chips, alfalfa and other biodegradable materials. The nutrient-dense soil created by the process can then be returned to families or donated to conservation land. 

The bill establishes the Maine Redevelopment Land Bank Authority to assist municipalities and other entities in the redevelopment of properties, including properties that are blighted, abandoned, environmentally hazardous and functionally obsolete, in order to return those properties to productive use. It also establishes the Development Ready Advisory Committee within the redevelopment authority in order to develop and maintain best practices for community development and to assist the redevelopment authority and any other entity that requests assistance with redevelopment matters.