ALBANY – In was in 2014 that the carcinogenic chemicals PFOS and PFOA were found in Washington Lake, the City of Newburgh’s water supply. Two years later a state of emergency was declared, and the city was connected to the New York City Catskill Aqueduct with the state picking up the tab.
The State Department of Environmental Conservation continues pressure the federal agency to remediate the problem which came from firefighting foam discharged at the Stewart Airport Air National Guard Base, said Sean Mahar, executive deputy commissioner.
“Primarily we need to see a treatment system installed on Recreation Pond that will address the flow of contamination from that site,” he said. “We know that DoD had put an interim system on that was not adequate for addressing that flow of contamination and that’s why we continue to press them to ensure that action is undertaken, and contamination is addressed. And it has taken time, but the state has been pressing them every step of the way.”
The DEC says an agreement with the DoD should also address off-site impacts to drinking water supplies in the City of Newburgh and towns of Newburgh and New Windsor and reduce continued threats to the environment.
Read the full article here
Leave a Reply