Cuomo Announces Record Deal To Clean Up Long Island Aquifer After 10 Year Fight

The U.S. Navy and Northrop Grumman have reached a record-setting agreement to cleanup a Long Island aquifer that has been a point of contention with the state for decades.

The chemicals at the Long Island aquifer have been spreading for years.
Photo Credit: *ny.gov*

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that they've reached an agreement to clean up the aquifer in Bethpage.
Photo Credit: *ny.gov*

Zak Failla

12/21/2020 3:00 p.m.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo declared “the end of a Long Island 10-year fight” on Monday, Dec. 21, announcing that the two have reached a $406 million plan to stop and remove Grumman’s groundwater pollutants that has been spreading in Bethpage for years.

“My DEC and our whole team here knew that there was a pollution plume left by Grumman with toxic chemicals in the aquifer,” he said. “It was left during the manufacturing era by Grumman and the plume has been growing and moving to more and more communities.”

Cuomo said that they fought for 10 years to get the deal done, which will include the installation of new containment extraction wells along the edges of the miles-long toxic plume.

"This is a landmark agreement that should be celebrated by all Long Islanders," Nassau County Executive Laura Curran said. "Nassau will work collaboratively with the federal and state govt every step of the way to ensure settlement funds are used to help provide clean & safe drinking water for all."

The governor noted that this is the largest settlement in state history.

“The question was always ‘what do we do, and how do we do it? How can we get toxic chemicals out of an underground aquifer,” Cuomo questioned. “It’s going to be an elaborate engineering device, and is the largest settlement in state history, but now we can protect the drinking water for the people of Long Island.”

As part of the plan, the Navy will be tasked with cleanup up the western side of the toxic plume, with Northrop Grumman dealing with the east side. Barriers will also be installed south side of the plume, which leads towards the Great South Bay.

“This historic achievement will result in the cleanup of the largest groundwater plume to ever threaten New York State’s environment and public health," DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos said in a statement. "The understanding reached with the polluters launch actions that will constitute one of the largest and most complex groundwater remediation projects in our nation’s history."

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