Contaminants

They’re Everywhere So-called ‘forever chemicals’ are hazardous, potent and ubiquitous

They’re Everywhere So-called ‘forever chemicals’ are hazardous, potent and ubiquitous

This is a tale about unintended consequences in science, governmental malfunction affecting Suffolk County, and a mammoth spread, globally, of poison.

It began in 1938. As the website Health Brief related last week: “A chemist at the DuPont company accidentally discovered an exciting new polymer. It repelled water, it was chemically stable and nonreactive, and nothing stuck to it. The material — brand name: Teflon — has been used in countless consumer products since then to reduce friction between surfaces. Among its best-known applications is in nonstick cookware. … In the past few decades, however, the chemicals that go into nonstick surfaces have been linked to certain health issues and environmental pollution.”

The Navy is wrong to let Calverton become Bethpage

The Navy is wrong to let Calverton become Bethpage

Suffolk County Executive Edward P. Romaine fired a shot across the U.S. Navy's bow last week.

At a community meeting in Calverton, Romaine threatened to sue because two toxic plumes at the former Naval Weapons Industrial Reserve Plant are spreading forever chemicals, or PFAS, and endangering the region's water. The Navy has delayed cleanup, Romaine said.

Romaine warns Navy: Suffolk ‘has options’ and will not wait forever on Calverton cleanup

Romaine warns Navy: Suffolk ‘has options’ and will not wait forever on Calverton cleanup

Suffolk County officials are pointing to the Navy’s cleanup of the Bethpage plume as a precedent — and warning they expect the same urgency in Calverton, where county testing shows contamination from the former Navy-owned Grumman manufacturing site continues to move through groundwater, surface water and fish habitat while federal cleanup efforts remain largely in the study phase.

Suffolk County Pushes Navy to Clean Up EPCAL Plumes

Suffolk County Pushes Navy to Clean Up EPCAL Plumes

Suffolk County says it has compiled mountains of ammunition in its fight to get the U.S. Navy to clean up plumes of numerous hazardous compounds emanating from the Enterprise Park at Calverton, including data showing fish highly contaminated with the perfluorinated compound PFOS the county says the Navy withheld for a year, and high levels of other perfluorinated compounds in the headwaters of the Peconic River.

After the U.S. Navy refused to allow the Suffolk County Health Department to present the results of its testing of wells surrounding plumes of contaminated groundwater from the former Navy-owned Grumman plant in Calverton at the February meeting of the Calverton Restoration Advisory Board (RAB), county representatives and members of the RAB took matters into their own hands Tuesday evening.

Discussing climate initiatives for Earth Day

Discussing climate initiatives for Earth Day

On this week's In Focus, Citizens Campaign for the Environment Executive Director Adrienne Esposito discusses concerns related to PFAS and Pittsford Town Supervisor Bill Smith talks about the Greenprint plan and comments on the impact of federal funding cuts on climate change initiatives.

Brookhaven Presents Cleanup Plan for Landfill Plume, but Some Say Measures are Inadequate

Brookhaven Presents Cleanup Plan for Landfill Plume, but Some Say Measures are Inadequate

The Town of Brookhaven held a public meeting on March 27 to present its corrective measures plan for a toxic plume emanating from the town landfill in Yaphank, but community advocates say the proposal falls far short of what’s needed. 

In 2023, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation ordered the town to investigate and plan to remediate the plume, which now extends 1.7 miles from the portions of the landfill constructed between 1971 and 1989 south toward Bellport Bay. Groundwater testing detected PFAS (so-called “forever chemicals”) and 1,4-dioxane in the plume. Both contaminants have been linked to a range of health issues, including cancer.

Toxic forever chemicals raise concerns about garden, farm products on Long Island

Toxic forever chemicals raise concerns about garden, farm products on Long Island

It was the first week of spring and Deborah Harris, of Riverhead, was visiting her local garden center, where she picked up two bags of fertilizer that she was told worked like a charm to keep deer off her hosta plants.

But after being advised to read the label for the product, Harris discovered the origins of the product were a sewage treatment facility in the Midwest, including the disclosure that it contained biosolids, one of the byproducts of waste treatment.

Brookhaven sues state DEC over requirement to clean up toxic plumes at landfill, airport

Brookhaven sues state DEC over requirement to clean up toxic plumes at landfill, airport

Brookhaven Town is suing the state Department of Environmental Conservation, claiming that a state law enacted last year blocks the agency from requiring the town to clean up toxic plumes stemming from the town’s mammoth landfill and a town-owned airport in Shirley.

How the EPA says cleanups are working at 5 Long Island Superfund sites

How the EPA says cleanups are working at 5 Long Island Superfund sites

Cleanup remedies at five Long Island hazardous waste sites "continue to be effective in protecting human health," the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said this week, though some of the toxic areas need continued monitoring. 

The agency conducted the federally mandated reviews at Superfund sites located in Glen Cove, Port Jefferson Station, Franklin Square and East Farmingdale. Across New York, New Jersey and Puerto Rico, 32 federal Superfund sites were appraised, which happen every five years, the EPA said. 

SCWA Completes Phase 1 of Water Main Project

SCWA Completes Phase 1 of Water Main Project

The Suffolk County Water Authority (SCWA) has completed the first phase of one of their most ambitious projects in decades. The South River Road water main is set to bring clean water to residences in Calverton whose wells have been impacted by PFAS – otherwise known as “forever chemicals.”

The Editorial Board: New Yorkers deserve better oversight of local waterways than the DEC is providing

The Editorial Board: New Yorkers deserve better oversight of local waterways than the DEC is providing

Attorney General Letitia James is right when she states: “Every New Yorker deserves clean, safe water.”

But it takes more than an assertion to make clean water happen. Fighting the pollution that continues to threaten the water we drink and area waterways that support wildlife and recreation takes leadership and aggressive measures from the state. It doesn’t look like we’re getting enough of either from New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation. 

New York State announces record investment in water infrastructure

New York State announces record investment in water infrastructure

In the most recent fiscal year, New York made more investments in water infrastructure than in any prior year.

Announcing the record spending Wednesday at Albany’s Corning Preserve, President and CEO of New York’s Environmental Facilities Corporation Maureen Coleman says nearly 330 projects were executed with financial assistance in the last fiscal year -- a 55 percent increase year-to-year.

Navy set to open treatment plant in September to contain Grumman plume

Navy set to open treatment plant in September to contain Grumman plume

The U.S. Navy is set to open a new treatment plant that is expected to help contain the extensive Grumman groundwater plume slowly moving south in Nassau County.

The Navy plant on Union Avenue, near Hempstead Turnpike in Bethpage, is expected to be operational in September, according to the state Department of Environmental Conservation.

Cheese manufacturer polluted water for months before Ischua Creek die-off

Cheese manufacturer polluted water for months before Ischua Creek die-off

Great Lakes Cheese often polluted Ischua Creek, data shows

It has been nearly a month since the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation began investigating wastewater discharge from Great Lakes Cheese that likely killed tens of thousands of fish and countless other aquatic species in Ischua Creek.

Down the Drain and Into the Aquifer: Long Island’s Septic Systems Just Got a Major Upgrade

Down the Drain and Into the Aquifer: Long Island’s Septic Systems Just Got a Major Upgrade

You flush and forget about it. But what goes down doesn’t just disappear. On Long Island, where it ends up has been a problem for decades. Outdated septic systems and cesspools leak pollutants into the groundwater. As a result, these aging systems pose serious threats to drinking water, the environment, public health, and the local economy. It’s been a long fight for change, but on July 23rd, Suffolk County took a huge step toward cleaner water.

State expands septic grant program, increases funding for Suffolk County

State expands septic grant program, increases funding for Suffolk County

New York State is increasing funding for grants that Suffolk County residents can use to replace outdated septic and cesspool systems with newer, advanced systems that reduce the contaminants wastewater releases into the environment.

In Riverhead, Gillibrand Sounds The Alarm On The Disastrous $8 Million Cut To National Estuary Program Funding Proposed In FY26 Budget That Would Endanger Americans’ Health

In Riverhead, Gillibrand Sounds The Alarm On The Disastrous $8 Million Cut To National Estuary Program Funding Proposed In FY26 Budget That Would Endanger Americans’ Health

Contaminated water can lead to a plethora of health risks; cutting funding to maintain estuary water quality will endanger Americans’ well-being

Today, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand sounded the alarm on the proposed $8 million funding cut from the National Estuary Program (NEP) in the president’s FY26 budget. The NEP works to maintain and restore water quality of 28 estuaries across the United States, including the Peconic Estuary and Long Island Sound. Without sufficient funding, the NEP will not be able to monitor New York’s estuaries and keep them safe from threats such as excess nitrogen pollution, pathogens, and harmful algal blooms, which have been shown to be harmful to public health and the environment. Funding to restore and protect our estuaries also boosts coastal resilience from storms, improves tourism and recreation, and supports local jobs.

What’s In The Water: Exclusive look inside Yale University labs to study impacts 1,4 dioxane on the human body

What’s In The Water: Exclusive look inside Yale University labs to study impacts 1,4 dioxane on the human body

News 12 is providing an exclusive look inside the labs at Yale University as researchers search for answers about how 1,4 dioxane impacts the human body.

DEC declares majority of Lawrence Aviation site ‘requires no further clean-up’

DEC declares majority of Lawrence Aviation site ‘requires no further clean-up’

On July 2, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation gathered with local officials at Port Jefferson’s former Lawrence Aviation site to announce the proposed delisting of 96% of the land from the New York State Superfund Registry.

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