Your June 23 editorial warned of the high costs of dealing with Maine’s PFAS crisis. Recent articles have also warned of the costs that will be incurred by the worsening climate crisis.
Ironically, the Maine Public Employees Retirement Fund invests in companies that are contributing to both of these crises. The board of directors claims that they have a fiduciary responsibility that prevents them from divesting from fossil fuel investments, despite a law, L.D. 99, that requires that they divest. It turns out that they also have invested in three of the manufacturers of PFAS.
According to corporate law, one of the three fiduciary obligations is the duty of good faith, which requires that they employ prudence and care when making business decisions. Would it not be an act of care to avoid profiting from investments that are harming present and future retirees?
Tom Mikulka, Ph.D.
Cape Elizabeth
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