SOURCE:
https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/long-island-macarthur-airport-drinking-water/
BY JENNIFER MCLOGAN - FEBRUARY 22, 2023
RONKONKOMA, N.Y. -- There are concerns about the public drinking water in and around Long Island's MacArthur Airport.
Authorities say it's safe, but people with private wells tell CBS2's Jennifer McLogan they're worried.
State environmental officials have designated the airport in Ronkonkoma as a superfund site after detecting significant chemical contamination in groundwater and soil.
"It's always concerning when you have volatile organic chemicals traveling beneath your home. The only good news about this toxic chemical is that it is easily removed with proper filtration technology," said Adrienne Esposito, executive director of Citizens Campaign for the Environment.
Over 700 residents who live in homes bordering airport property received letters stating the public water supply is safe, but six homes with private wells tested positive and are being monitored.
"I am trusting them, yes, and there was a time when I did have well water," one homeowner said.
"We don't really use tap water very often but was concerning when we read it," another homeowner said.
"My son breaks out in skin rashes, and usually it happens after he takes a shower," another homeowner said.
After past decades of firefighting exercises using foam with substances known as PFAS and jet fuel spills into the fragile aquifer, the airport was just given the confirmed superfund designation.
"That just gives us more tools in the toolbox to hold the responsible parties accountable, ensure an appropriate investigation is undertaken and the appropriate cleanup measures are advanced, as well," said Sean Mahar, with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.
The DEC is negotiating an agreement with the town of Islip to clean up the site and says it will continue to keep the community informed.
At an airport event celebrating a $26 million investment in terminal improvements, we asked the supervisor about exposure.
"Most people, I think almost all, are getting their drinking water from public water," Islip Town Supervisor Angie Carpenter said. "There is no safer water anywhere in the land than Long Island drinking water."
Still, some wonder if they were protected before the plume was detected in 2018. PFAS pollutants can be linked to serious disease.