Brookhaven scrambles to fix landfill cleanup plan after DEC finds errors

Brookhaven faces a November deadline to fix plans for cleaning up a toxic plume south of the town's landfill after the state faulted them for containing a series of errors.

The state Department of Environmental Conservation said it could not accept Brookhaven's draft report outlining five potential cleanup proposals. In an Aug. 5 letter to the town, the DEC said Brookhaven's plan was riddled with factual and mathematical errors.

The nine-page letter, from DEC geologist Francesca King, said Brookhaven's process for selecting a cleanup plan "was not in full compliance with the [state's] regulatory requirements."

"The report must be revised accordingly," King wrote. She gave the town 90 days, or until about Nov. 5, to file a revised plan.

In an email Monday, Brookhaven spokesman Drew Scott said the town "has not yet filed its response, but will do so within the 90 days." He declined to comment further.

The DEC had ordered Brookhaven to craft plans for cleaning up a 4-mile long toxic plume that runs southeast of the town landfill toward Bellport Bay.

In May, the town proposed connecting more homes near the plume to public water systems and expanding a drinking water monitoring program. The town has said it expects to close the landfill in about two years.

The town rejected suggestions by the DEC to consider far more costly alternatives, such as removing decades-old trash from the 192-acre landfill and shipping it elsewhere. The town has also declined to build groundwater treatment plants around the dump.

Brookhaven Supervisor Dan Panico has said water hookups and monitoring were the "most realistic" and cost-effective options for treating the plume. The town also rejected immediate landfill closure, saying it would be too expensive.

Adrienne Esposito, executive director of the Farmingdale nonprofit Citizens Campaign for the Environment, said Brookhaven's May draft was “woefully anemic.” She said it fell far short of what is required to make drinking water safe for hundreds of people living near the plume.

“We were very delighted that the DEC’s response agreed,” Esposito said.

“That was shocking and so alarming,” Esposito said, referring to Brookhaven's draft report to the DEC. “They weren’t plans. None of them assessed plume migration or plume remediation.”

Brookhaven had sued the DEC last year, claiming a 2025 state law blocks the agency from requiring the town to clean up toxic plumes originating from the landfill and town-owned Calabro Airport in Shirley. Town officials said they would nonetheless continue drafting cleanup plans for the plume.

The DEC said then that the 2025 law "does not apply" to the landfill and airport.

In the August letter, King faulted the town for a litany of errors, some as small as citing incorrect sections of state law or referring to a location as being "upgradient" instead of "northwest" of the dump.

King also questioned the town's cost estimates and estimated impact on taxes. She noted the number of taxpayers in the town appeared to vary from one section of the report to another, making it difficult to compare projected tax hikes.

She also pushed back on the town's suggestion that the DEC was selecting the cleanup plan.

"DEC is not choosing the corrective measure," King wrote. "The town is required to select the corrective measure based on the selection criteria in the regulations, including community feedback."

About 200 residents at a March 27 hearing on the landfill plume criticized Brookhaven officials. Many said they did not trust the town's handling of the plume and called for the landfill's immediate closure.

By Carl MacGowan

carl.macgowan@newsday.comCarlMacGowan

Carl MacGowan is a Long Island native who covers Brookhaven Town after having previously covered Smithtown, Suffolk County courts and numerous spot news and feature stories over his 20-plus year career at Newsday.