EPA Announces Plan To Clean Ground Water At Roosevelt Field

The EPA recently announced that it was going to begin action to cleanup contaminated ground water at Roosevelt Field, a process that will cost millions and take many years to complete.

Under the proposed cleanup plan, the EPA will use a treatment process to remove contaminants where trichloroethylene (TCE) and tetrachloroethylene (PCE) were detected. This will reduce potential threats to people’s health by removing and treating the chemicals in the groundwater. The plan expands on a cleanup plan from 2007 and is estimated to cost approximately $13.5 million.

“Old Roosevelt Field’s storied history includes supporting our nation during World Wars I and II and other aviation milestones," said EPA Regional Administrator Pete Lopez. "Today, the property is a vibrant commercial area. This cleanup plan advances our progress as we protect the people who visit the area."

According to Newsday, the EPA will take two years to build the system to remove the chemicals. After that, it estimates 35 years to clean the ground water.

The EPA will hold a public meeting on March 7 to explain the proposed cleanup plan and take public comments on the proposal and other alternatives considered. The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. at the Village of Garden City Village Hall, 351 Stewart Ave., Garden City. Comments will be accepted until March 26.
Residents may submit comments in writing to Sherrel Henry, Remedial Project Manager, 290 Broadway, 20th Floor, New York, NY 10007. They can also call 212-637-4273 or email henry.sherrel@epa.gov.

The treatment of the water at Roosevelt Field has been going on for decades. A treatment system, which uses a process called air stripping, was installed by the Village of Garden City in 1987 and upgraded in the late 1990s to remove contaminants from two public drinking water supply wells just south of the airfield after TCE and PCE were discovered in the village's wells. The site was added to the Superfund list in 2000.

In 2007, the EPA finalized a cleanup plan for area groundwater contamination which included extraction of groundwater contamination predominantly in the western portion of the site. In 2011, the EPA constructed the groundwater treatment system called for in the 2007 cleanup plan that pulls groundwater beneath the site, treats it to remove contamination and discharges the treated groundwater to a nearby basin. The public water supply for Garden City is routinely tested by the Garden City water district to ensure that all federal and state drinking water standards are being met.

Throughout the cleanup process being implemented at the site, monitoring will be conducted to ensure the effectiveness of the cleanup technology. Groundwater will be sampled and the results used to verify that cleanup goals are being achieved. The EPA will conduct a review within five years to ensure the effectiveness of the cleanup.

Photo: Patch