Chemung County residents are raising concerns about soil and groundwater contamination at a proposed housing development site.
A citizen coalition is asking Gov. Kathy Hochul to take action.
A group in the town of Big Flats, who call themselves “Big Flats Defenders,” want a thorough investigation and total remediation of a site that used to be home to the Agway Fertilizer Plant.
Now, the town has plans to build a senior housing development on top of the site.
Waste from fertilizer and pesticide manufacturing at the site was dumped nearby for decades.
The state Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) has documented that chemicals—including nitrates and the insecticide Dieldrin—were found in groundwater beneath the site at levels that exceeded the state’s groundwater maximum contaminant levels (MCLs).
Dieldrin was banned in the U.S. in the 1980s.
Both contaminants pose environmental and health risks, according to federal agencies.
Big Flats resident Greg Goldwaith said he is worried about the pollution.
“When I first moved in, I would watch the railroad cars being unloaded off the railroad spur,” explained Goldwaith. “I would see the chemicals being dumped on the ground, not cleaned up and just washed away with the rain.”
The site is located adjacent to the town’s municipal complex, one block from an elementary school and across from a park.
Big Flats resident John Little said he is concerned for the children in the community.
“We have kids’ baseball teams out there playing all summer,” said Little. “We just don't need this dirt and debris spread all over this town where our kids are going to be breathing it in and touching it.”
The group sent a letter to Hochul earlier this month asking her to ensure the site is “fully restored to pre-disposal conditions to the extent feasible” and that no redevelopment be permitted on the site unless this request is met.
The NYSDEC sent the following statement: “The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Division of Environmental Remediation originally investigated the Agway Facility site in the 1980s. The Agway Facility is a Class N site, meaning DEC did not find evidence of hazardous waste at the property which warranted listing the property on the Registry of Inactive Hazardous Waste Sites.
In 2020, DEC’s Spill Response Program, with consultation from the Chemung County and New York State Health Departments, sampled groundwater wells at the facility, and off-site drinking water wells, to confirm the determinations made in the 1980s. Based on these results, no additional investigation was necessary at that time, as there was a lack of potential public health exposure pathways.
In light of the site’s historical background and the proposal to change the former facility’s use, DEC proactively reached out to the developer and town officials to confirm the town will require a comprehensive Phase I and Phase II environmental investigation prior to final approval of the project. DEC is directly communicating with the developer to ensure they are aware of their potential responsibilities if any contamination is discovered.”
Walter Hang is president of Toxics Targeting, an environmental advocacy group in Ithaca. He is coordinating with Big Flats Defenders to push officials to do more.
“I think that this is going to be a classic case of citizens trying to educate their local authorities about the failure of the state authorities to clean up this site, and it's practically right in the middle of their town,” said Hang. “It's got residents on three sides.”
WSKG reached out to the town supervisor and did not hear back.
The town’s planning board is overseeing the project. Their next meeting is May 6.