Environmentalists Say DEC Has No Plans To Clean Up Toxic Plume In Speonk

The Group for the East End is demanding that the State Department of Environmental Conservation hold a public information meeting following reports that the state agency has no plans to clean up a toxic plume of groundwater in Speonk first detected more than a decade ago.

According to Jenn Hartnagel, a senior environmental advocate for the Group for the East End, the Bridgehampton-based nonprofit began calling for the public meeting late last month after learning that the DEC has relabeled the roughly two-mile-long plume as a class “N” site. The new designation means that no further action is necessary, including no groundwater monitoring, and that there will be no remediation. The plume had originally been given a “P” designation, which stands for potential Superfund site.

Ms. Hartnagel said this week that no information was shared with the public by the DEC before this decision was made, possibly as early as January, and that residents who live near or above the plume should have the opportunity to ask questions.

To date, the DEC has not responded to the organization’s request for a meeting, and Albany representatives of the agency—the only ones who are permitted to comment on the case, according to local DEC officials—have not returned numerous calls seeking 
additional information for the past month.

“The Group’s goal, at this point, is to ensure that the NYSDEC provides a community 
forum so that residents have the opportunity to ask questions and achieve a clear understanding of the NYSDEC’s action 
plan as it relates to this 
plume,” Ms. Hartnagel wrote in an e-mail. “There are many unanswered questions. We 
want to be sure public health and the environment remain a priority.”

The plume, which was first discovered in 2001 after an unidentified resident complained to officials that well water in Speonk tasted odd, was the subject of a massive 16,000-page characterization study commissioned by the DEC and conducted by Massachusetts-based environmental consulting firm Camp Dresser and McKee (CDM) in December 2011. The report, which took more than a year to complete, failed to identify a potential source for the plume—a necessary step in determining a guilty party responsible for funding any cleanup efforts.

The study indicates several potential source areas, all north of Old Country Road and south of Sunrise Highway, including land that was used as a former military target range prior to 
World War II—but does not specify a certain cause. The plume is believed to be approximately 120 feet below the surface 
north of Old Country Road, 
and approximately 80 feet 
below the surface at Montauk Highway; the contamination appears to be moving in a southwesterly direction toward Moriches Bay.

The highest concentration of contaminants—which includes tetrachloroethene, trichloroethene, trichloroethane, carbon tetrachloride and chloroform—is now near Circle Place in Speonk, which is south and west of the intersection of Old Country and Speonk-Riverhead roads, according to the report.

While the document does not recommend specific remediation efforts, it does suggest continued monitoring of the groundwater in the area. But that will not happen, according to representatives from the Suffolk County Department of Health Services, an agency that has worked with the DEC to study the plume, as long as the site retains its “N” classification.

Ron Paulsen, an associate hydrogeologist with the Suffolk County Department of Health Services, said DEC officials have not shared with him their reason for changing the classification of the site. He added that the county still believes that further monitoring is required.

“The county’s position has been consistent,” Mr. Paulsen said. “We feel that the monitoring and tracking of private wells is still important, and if some sort of remedy needs to be put in place we would get behind that.

“At the very least,” he continued, “you have to keep track of where it is traveling to and deal with potential health issues in the future.”

Doug Feldman, the supervisor of Suffolk County’s Office of Water Resources, said this week that the contaminants in the groundwater are still dangerous because they have the potential to reach Moriches Bay. He added, however, that it is not yet known how long it will take the contaminants to reach the bay, or what state the chemicals would be in at that stage.

“I think the contaminants will be there for a long time, because groundwater moves very slowly,” Mr. Feldman said. “I don’t know when it will reach the bay, but anytime we have contamination it is a concern.”

If they can convince the DEC to hold a public meeting, Ms. Hartnagel and officials with her organization, who have 
been working closely with 
members of the Speonk-Remsenburg Civic Association, are hopeful that the state agency will explain its reasons for 
not cleaning up the contamination.

State Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr. also said this week that he wants the DEC to send representatives to the South Fork to explain the state agency’s position. He added that he only recently learned of the decision not to clean up the toxic site and has several questions of his own.

“Based on our initial review of everything, I think I am going to be agreeing with the Group and requesting that the DEC hold a public meeting and explain their findings to the public,” Mr. Thiele said. “I’m not prepared to say that their determination is wrong, but there has been great public interest in this, and concern. I don’t think it is suitable for the DEC to say that everything is okay and close up shop.”

Noting that he has the support of the Group for the East End, Mr. Thiele said that he and State Senator Kenneth P. LaValle are planning to reintroduce legislation that, if approved, would force the DEC to publicize information about all potentially hazardous or toxic sites in the state on its website. The legislation, which was first proposed two sessions ago, will be reintroduced in January, Mr. Thiele said.

Local residents, meanwhile, are also pressuring the DEC to explain its position.

Larry Larson, who has lived for the past 30 years on Circle Place—above the heart of the plume—said he and his wife, Grace, were forced to switch from well water to public water because of the contamination. They have also stopped growing their own vegetables, because they do not know the danger, if any, that the plume poses. The Larsons are also concerned that their property values could plummet if potential buyers learn about the contamination and the lack of a plan to clean it up.

According to Ms. Larson, the couple has not heard from the DEC in two years, when agency officials came on their property to drill holes and sample the groundwater.

“There has been no conclusion,” Ms. Larson said. “I don’t want someone to come up the driveway one day and say the house is condemned because no one told us otherwise. I’d like some conclusion as to this property.”

Mr. Larson agreed, saying that the DEC has left him and his neighbors in limbo.

While pleased that state representatives are taking action, Ms. Hartnagel said her environmental organization will not be sitting quietly and waiting for answers. She said they will continue to harass DEC officials until they start explaining their actions.

“This has been going on for 10 years,” Ms. Hartnagel said. “It has been relatively quiet, but now we have some type of action, [and] we believe that the community deserves to hear from the DEC and have an explanation of what their future plans are.”