fossil fuels

Citizens Campaign for the Environment Calls on East Hampton Energy Storage Center to Clean Up PFAS Contamination

Battery energy storage is a crucial clean energy technology, but it must be developed responsibly. 

Battery Storage must be designed to protect Long Island’s aquifer. 

For immediate release: June 22, 2026
For more information, contact:
Adrienne Esposito, Executive Director, 516-390-7150, aesposito@citizenscampaign.org

Farmingdale, NY – Suffolk County Water Authority has closed two wells in East Hampton after finding contamination from toxic PFAS chemicals and has filed a lawsuit alleging a 2023 fire at the East Hampton Energy Storage Center is responsible for the contamination. This Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) was one of the first to be built in New York and is of an older, first-generation model that was put in place before New York implemented strict fire codes. New BESS facilities will be built with state-of-the-art fire mitigation systems that do not require water to be used, this older facility used over 2 million gallons of water to fight the fire and had no containment system to prevent contamination from seeping into Long Island’s groundwater.

Citizens Campaign for the Environment is urging East Hampton Energy Storage Center to take responsibility and clean up the contamination. CCE is also urging New York State and municipalities to require that new facilities implement stormwater management to prevent PFAS or other contaminates from entering groundwater. While the situation in the East Hampton fire would be prevented by the New York State fire codes, developers should still be implementing a system to ensure there is no potential PFAS in stormwater runoff from rain.

Adrienne Esposito, Executive Director, Citizens Campaign for the Environment, issued the following statement:

“Battery Energy Storage Systems are a critical piece of our renewable energy mix and necessary to diversify our energy sources. They stabilize our energy grid in the face of more extreme weather events and provide capacity that will reduce our reliance on fossil fuels, leading to cleaner air for New Yorkers. Every large-scale energy project has impacts, but especially with newer technology such as BESS, it is crucial that we build them responsibly and in a way that is protective of our environment.  

The East Hampton Energy Storage Center was one of the first BESS projects in the state.  The fire helped spur New York to create a stringent, protective fire code to ensure these systems are built safely with no risk to the community. PFAS contamination was a result of using the sprinkler system designed to fight such a fire if one occurred, therefore, the company is at fault and we are calling on the developer to fully clean up that contamination. Moving forward, we need to ensure that no toxic contamination results from stormwater runoff at BESS facilities. We must protect drinking water and communities. We must also transition off fossil fuels by building renewable energy and energy storage. This can absolutely be done safely and responsibly.”

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Can the E.P.A. Survive Lee Zeldin?

Can the E.P.A. Survive Lee Zeldin?

Last summer, more than a hundred and fifty staff members at the Environmental Protection Agency sent a letter to the agency’s head, Lee Zeldin, outlining their concerns about his leadership. Topping the list was Zeldin’s naked partisanship. The administrator often used his official communications to trash Democrats. This “politicized messaging,” the letter said, was undermining trust in the agency. So, too, were Zeldin’s gutting of the E.P.A.’s research division and his tendency to ignore the findings of its scientists. The missive noted that it reflected the staffers’ personal, rather than professional, opinions, and had been written on their own time. It ended by urging Zeldin to “correct course.”

As climate deniers score, Earth Day’s down – but not out

As climate deniers score, Earth Day’s down – but not out

Unnatural selection: As scientific ignorance infects the nation, it's not easy being green -- even on Earth Day.

Earth Day is not what it used to be, in amazing and terrible ways.

LIPA, labor and environmental groups highlight strong first year for South Fork wind

LIPA, labor and environmental groups highlight strong first year for South Fork wind

Officials say that reliability proved especially important during this winter’s cold snaps, when energy demand surged and fossil‑fuel prices spiked.

The South Fork Wind project is marking its first full year of operation, and new data released this week shows the nation’s first utility‑scale offshore wind farm is performing even better than expected. Leaders from LIPA, labor unions, environmental groups and the offshore wind industry gathered on Long Island to highlight the results, which show the 12‑turbine project generated electricity on 99% of days last year and reached a 50% capacity factor—a level comparable to traditional power plants during key demand periods.

Offshore Wind Is Already Working for Long Island — and the Opportunity Is Just Beginning

Offshore Wind Is Already Working for Long Island — and the Opportunity Is Just Beginning

Off the coast of Long Island, a new chapter in the region’s energy future is already spinning.

The South Fork Wind project — the first utility-scale offshore wind farm serving New York — is now delivering electricity to the East End, demonstrating that offshore wind is no longer theoretical. It’s operating infrastructure.

An invisible threat in Long Island’s waters

An invisible threat in Long Island’s waters

For generations, the waters surrounding Long Island have defined its identity — from the wide-open waterfronts of the South Shore to the shellfish beds of the North Shore. But beneath the surface, a quieter transformation is underway.

Advocates see 2 Lee Zeldins: Friend on local issues, not on global ones

Advocates see 2 Lee Zeldins: Friend on local issues, not on global ones

WASHINGTON — As a four-term congressman, Republican Lee Zeldin played a key role in the yearslong bipartisan push to save Plum Island,  off Long Island’s North Fork, from potential commercial development. He helped secure funding for clean water projects in his Suffolk district. And he spoke out against a 2018 proposal to permit offshore drilling in the Atlantic Ocean.

NYS environmental groups upset at federal climate policy reversal

NYS environmental groups upset at federal climate policy reversal

New York climate advocates are disturbed by the Trump administration’s decision to revoke a key legal finding stating that climate change impacts public health.

The 2009 Endangerment Finding has served as the basis for national efforts to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions and build more clean energy. The administration claims revoking the finding will lower transportation and energy costs.

Newsday - NYS Budget: What's included for transportation, environment, economic development

Newsday - NYS Budget: What's included for transportation, environment, economic development

Gov. Kathy Hochul presented her proposed $260 billion state budget for 2026-2027 on Tuesday. Here are details on some key topics:

LIPA and Suffolk County Launch Partnership to Advance Large-Scale Industrial Solar Development

LIPA and Suffolk County Launch Partnership to Advance Large-Scale Industrial Solar Development

The Long Island Power Authority CEO Carrie Meek Gallagher and Suffolk County, N.Y., Executive Ed Romaine announced a new partnership to evaluate the potential for large-scale solar energy development across major industrial areas in Suffolk County.

LIPA, Suffolk County partner on industrial solar analysis

LIPA, Suffolk County partner on industrial solar analysis

The Long Island Power Authority and Suffolk County have launched a new partnership to evaluate large-scale solar energy opportunities across major industrial areas in the county.

The project, announced Jan. 14 by LIPA CEO Carrie Meek Gallagher and Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine, will analyze rooftop solar potential, grid capacity, and permitting processes in key commercial zones. A consultant will be selected through a newly developed Request for Qualifications process.

Esposito: For reliable power, Long Island needs offshore wind

Esposito: For reliable power, Long Island needs offshore wind

In Brief:

  • Experts warn New York could face energy shortages as early as 2027.

  • Offshore wind offers clean, reliable power and price stability.

  • South Fork Wind Farm already powers 70,000 Long Island homes.

  • Upgraded transmission and new wind projects are urgently needed.

This fall, New Yorkers across the state showed up and spoke up to demand clean, affordable, reliable, safe and healthy energy infrastructure during the state’s energy plan hearings. Tragically, the Trump administration is wreaking havoc on our nation’s clean energy progress, making it more important than ever for New York to step up and lead the way to the sustainable, resilient system we need. Right now, we’re not on track.

Residents speak out at state energy plan hearing in Stony Brook

Residents speak out at state energy plan hearing in Stony Brook

On Sept. 29, a mix of grassroots organizers, student activists, utility workers, elected officials, and environmental professionals voiced varying priorities at the New York State draft energy plan hearing at Stony Brook University. The university saw multiple outdoor rallies in addition to 2 ½ hours of public comments on the 15-year plan, with concerns covering jobs, affordability, environmental safety, and more. 

The EPA’s Repeal of Core Greenhouse Gas Rules

The EPA’s Repeal of Core Greenhouse Gas Rules

“Trump’s EPA to repeal core of greenhouse gas rules,” was the Reuters headline this week as Lee Zeldin, chosen by Donald Trump to be administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, announced what Reuters said “will rescind the long-standing finding that greenhouse gas emissions endanger human health, as well as tailpipe emission standards for vehicles, removing the legal foundation of greenhouse gas regulations across industries.”

EPA to repeal all greenhouse gas vehicle emissions standards, rescind scientific finding that planet-warming gases endanger public health

EPA to repeal all greenhouse gas vehicle emissions standards, rescind scientific finding that planet-warming gases endanger public health

Following through on a pledge made in March, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin announced Tuesday that the EPA is proposing to repeal all greenhouse gas emissions standards for light-duty, medium-duty, and heavy-duty vehicles and engines. 

PSC cancels New York power line project for offshore wind energy

PSC cancels New York power line project for offshore wind energy

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEXSTAR) — New York’s Public Service Commission decided on Thursday to stop the project that would bring offshore wind power to New York City. They said that their decision would protect New Yorkers from paying for expensive power lines that might not be needed soon.

Why Is It So Hard for New York to Pass Climate Bills?

Why Is It So Hard for New York to Pass Climate Bills?

Environmentalists increasingly blame Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie — who’s firing back.

Tensions are still simmering among state lawmakers and advocates after the Assembly closed its 2025 session last week without passing any of this year’s flagship climate and environmental bills.

Legislators shelved measures to cut packaging waste, transition homes off fossil fuels, and ban toxic “forever chemicals” from everyday products. Each measure had passed the Senate, and an Assembly vote was the final hurdle. But most of them never came to a vote.

Environmentalists wary as business, labor praise Hochul’s nuclear plan

Environmentalists wary as business, labor praise Hochul’s nuclear plan

Some environmental groups are slamming New York’s full-throated embrace of new nuclear.

ALBANY, New York — Labor unions and big manufacturers support Gov. Kathy Hochul’s full-speed-ahead push for new nuclear energy, but environmental advocates are wary.

Op-ed: A look at Zeldin's EPA leadership

Op-ed: A look at Zeldin's EPA leadership

Long Islander Lee Zeldin was thrust into the national spotlight with his nomination by President Donald Trump to be administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Trump said: “I have known Lee Zeldin for a long time, and have watched him handle, brilliantly, some extremely difficult and complex situations. I am very proud to have him in the Trump Administration, where he will quickly prove to be a great contributor.”

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