The New York state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has identified multiple locations as superfund sites in the city of Corning.
In August, Denison Park and the city of Corning Fire Department location were designated as Class 2 state superfund sites requiring further investigation for contamination risk and exposure to the community, according to public notice documents.
The designations come four months after the DEC released information that McKinney Park, Hillvue Park and Williams Street Park would undergo detailed environmental studies of soil, surface and groundwater due to contamination from glass manufacturing waste.
All locations identified as Class 2 superfund sites are currently open and accessible to the public.
Decades ago, ash, brick, and glass (ABG) was used as fill throughout the city. The soil in the Corning superfund sites was found to be contaminated with metals and semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) due to the presence of this fill—also called ABG. Semi-volatile organic compounds are chemicals that can be found in pesticides, oil-based products, and fire retardants.
The DEC lists arsenic, cadmium and lead as primary metal contaminant concerns in the Corning superfund sites.
The state Inactive Hazardous Waste Disposal Site Program database lists all of these sites in the city of Corning as Class 2, which means there is a significant threat to public health or the environment.
“People are unlikely to contact contamination unless they dig or otherwise disturb soils in areas of known soil contamination, but this does not usually occur in the park,” the DEC said in an email.
The statement continued: “DEC would implement a short-term response action to address any potential exposure if there were areas where visible fill containing ash, brick, or glass was present. The area is served by a public water supply that is routinely tested and not affected by this contamination.”
Colleen Boland, a concerned resident, asked city of Corning Mayor Bill Boland and the Corning City Council for more information related to Denison Park during the Sept. 2 council meeting. She asked whether the park would be closed to the public and if it is not, for the city to provide detailed information regarding the city’s decision. Colleen Boland and Bill Boland are siblings.
“In a popular park where one can almost always see young children playing, I can’t help but remember my own [childhood] in that very same park where making mud pies was one of my favorite play activities. In other words, I disturbed the soil,” Boland said, addressing the Corning City Council.
The city parks include playgrounds, picnic areas, pavilions, tennis courts, basketball courts, soccer fields, a public pool, walking trails and open grass areas.
The sites all show contamination from glass manufacturing waste. The DEC identified metals and SVOCs in soil and groundwater that exceeded state standards and guidelines.
The city fire department location also reported metals found in the sediment along the Chemung River bank that exceeded state standards.
Boron was detected in groundwater at levels that exceeded state standards at the fire department location as well.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Boron is a natural occurring element.
However, when combined with oxygen it is often used as boric acid or borax in producing glass and ceramics, firefighting foam, soaps, bleaches, detergents and pesticides. Boron can be ingested through air particles and drinking water. It does not break down in the environment.
These sites are the latest discovery of soil contamination in the city, which consists of three square miles and has a population of 11,000 according to 2020 census data, the latest data available.
In 2012, construction on the expansion to the Corning-Painted Post High School (C-PP) uncovered ABG at the construction site. The contamination was also eventually found in the adjacent residential neighborhood, Houghton Plot, in 2014. The DEC then worked with Corning Incorporated on necessary studies and remediation of the soil in these two areas.
The cleanup for C-PP was completed in June 2021. The DEC began its cleanup efforts in Houghton Plot in 2018 and most of the properties have been completed. It is not clear how many remain that require remediation. The DEC expects cleanup for properties in Houghton Plot that have given the state permission to remediate the soil to be completed in 2026. Both sites are under continued monitoring by the DEC.
Corning Mayor Bill Boland said in an email that the city is “not funding any activities regarding the identification of contaminants or remediation.”
In April, Boland told WSKG that the McKinney Park, Hillvue Park and William Street Park superfund sites are being studied and remediated between the city and the DEC directly.
“What DEC has agreed to do for the city of Corning, instead of waiting to negotiate with Corning Inc., they have agreed that they will remediate those sites,“ said Boland. “We could have been doing this, like Houghton Plot, for eight years, and we're going to get it done in three,” said Boland.
The state superfund program will identify what they call potentially responsible parties and give them an opportunity to investigate and clean up contaminated sites.
However, if a party is unable or unwilling to perform the cleanup, DEC uses state superfund monies to pay for the cleanup and then seek reimbursement from the potentially responsible party.
It is unclear what the costs were for initial superfund site clean up and what it will cost to remediate the newly announced sites. The DEC does not have those figures for the newer sites because the work is not completed. Cleanup at C-PP and Houghton Plot was done by Corning Inc.
WSKG reached out to Corning Inc. and did not hear back in time for publication.
The DEC provided the following statement to WSKG: “New York State is working to oversee the comprehensive cleanup of environmental contamination sites through the State Superfund (SSF) program, including sites in the city of Corning, Steuben County, as part of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC) commitment to protect public health and the environment.”
The timeline for pre-design investigation for Denison Park and the fire department is later this year. The state completed its pre-design investigations in June for Hillvue Park, Williams Street Park and McKinney Park. Remediation for all of these areas is expected in 2026.
An environmental cleanup plan from the DEC details what the state, city and county are doing to remediate the contamination identified in the city of Corning.
The city plans to make upgrades to McKinney Park, Hillvue Park, and Williams Park once they have been remediated, according to the mayor. Design firm Chiuten Trowbridge Landscape Architects was hired and the city will pay for the upgrades. It is not clear what the cost of the upgrades will be.
It is not clear whether Denison Park is included in the park upgrades.
Boland did not respond to WSKG’s follow up questions in time for publication.