Public Meeting on Proposed Remedy Tuesday, Oct. 16; Public Comments on Plan due Oct. 31 

As part of the state's ongoing actions to complete a comprehensive cleanup of the Dzus Fastener site in the Suffolk County town of West Islip, the New York State Departments of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and Health (DOH) today released the Proposed Remedial Action Plan (PRAP) that will expedite the cleanup of this contamination. The proposed cleanup plan includes the expedited removal of contaminated sediment from a section of Willetts Creek approximately 500 feet south of the West Islip Senior High School footbridge to the outfall of Lake Capri located along the Montauk Highway, as well as the excavation of contaminated soils from residential properties abutting the creek and the lake.  

Commissioner Seggos said, “Under New York’s robust State Superfund program, DEC has made significant progress to clean up contamination attributed to the Dzus Fastener site to protect public health and the environment and help make this community whole again. DEC is moving swiftly to finalize this cleanup plan and bolster our expedited cleanup effort and moves us closer to completing the comprehensive cleanup this community deserves.”  

DEC and DOH will host a public meeting to discuss the proposed plan on Tuesday, Oct. 16, at 7:00 p.m. at West Islip Senior High School. The Proposed Remedial Action Plan is available for public review from Oct. 1 through Oct. 31, 2018. Members of the public wishing to comment on the plan are invited to offer comments at the public meeting, or submit comments in writing to: Payson Long, Project Manager, NYSDEC, 625 Broadway, 12th floor, Albany, NY 12233-7017, or payson.long@dec.ny.gov. 

Primary contaminants of concern at the site are cadmium and trivalent chromium. Under the proposed plan, contaminated sediment and soil will be excavated from low lying residential properties adjacent to, and within, Willetts Creek and Lake Capri. Soil samples will be collected and analyzed to evaluate the effectiveness of the cleanup and clean fill will be imported for use as backfill to restore the creek.  

Throughout the cleanup process, significant protections will be put in place to mitigate impacts to the surrounding area and minimize potential for exposure to subsurface soil and sediment contamination, including implementation of a Community Air Monitoring Plan requiring air quality monitoring during all ground intrusive work in impacted areas, as well as use of designated truck routes, where possible, and employment of flaggers to safely direct traffic. A temporary fabric structure with an air filtration system will be used to house the processing equipment to control odors, dust, and other nuisance concerns such as noise, and prevent these concerns from leaving the work area. 

DEC and DOH will continue to work closely with the community to keep residents informed and appraised of cleanup activities. Project documents are available at the West Islip Public Library. Additional site details are available on the project’s webpage at: https://www.dec.ny.gov/chemical/114710.html. 

New York's State Superfund Program identifies and characterizes suspected inactive hazardous waste disposal sites. Sites that pose a significant threat to public health and/or the environment go through a process of investigation, evaluation, cleanup and monitoring. For more information about the program, visit: www.dec.ny.gov/chemical/8439.html. 

The public can submit any health-related questions regarding the site to: Scarlett McLaughlin, New York State Department of Health, Bureau of Environmental Exposure Investigation, Empire State Plaza, Corning Tower, Room 1787, Albany, NY 12237, or beei@health.ny.gov.