Amanda Lefton Takes the Helm: New York’s Environmental Future Gets a Bold New Leader
Long Islander Amanda Lefton named new DEC commissioner
Amanda Lefton, a Queens native who grew up on Long Island and now lives upstate with her wife, has been tapped as commissioner of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.
The ‘elephant in the room’ at Palumbo’s annual environmental roundtable: future of federal funds
Representatives of two dozen organizations gathered Thursday for an annual environmental roundtable meeting hosted by State Senator Anthony Palumbo to discuss regional environmental issues, concerns and needs. The event went off as it does every year: a cordial, free-wheeling, pass-the-mic conversation.
If the ongoing federal staffing cuts and budget-slashing being undertaken by the Trump administration worried the environmental advocates and government officials in the room, their concerns were mostly left unspoken —even though most of the programs addressing local environmental issues substantially rely on federal funding.
Navy Nudged: Local Officials Urge Feds to Clean Up Calverton Contamination
Local officials, advocates and residents are renewing calls for the U.S. Navy to clean up toxins used at the former Calverton-based Naval Weapons Industrial Reserve Plant that are polluting local waters.
Suffolk County calls on feds to make Calverton a Superfund site
Suffolk, advocates urge Superfund status for former Grumman plant in Calverton
Proposed bill could ban certain pesticides with PFAS chemicals in Maryland
A proposed bill in Maryland could require the Department of Agriculture to ban certain pesticides and PFAS, or forever chemicals, from being used in the state.
Under House Bill 386, the Department of Agriculture would have to develop a list of certain pesticides that have forever chemicals as active ingredients. Those listed chemicals would not be allowed to be used or sold in the state.
Senators Young, Peters lead effort to Protect the Great Lake
Zeldin Confirmed To EPA; Environmentalists Ask That He Remember Roots
LONG ISLAND, NY — As the Senate confirmed former Rep. Lee Zeldin as administrator of the Environmental Agency, local advocates are imploring that he "hold strong and do what's right to protect our environment and our future."
Zeldin was confirmed by the Senate in a vote of 56 to 42, with two not voting.
"CONFIRMED! Thank you to the 56 senators for your vote and confidence," Zeldin wrote on X, adding that he was "grateful" to President Donald Tump for "having the faith in me to be part of his Cabinet as EPA Administrator."
Navy agrees to more testing of private drinking wells near Grumman Calverton, sets open house
Facing renewed calls for clean water, the U.S. Navy has agreed to a new round of testing private drinking wells in the shadow of a former Grumman plant in Calverton.
The Navy is seeking permission from property owners in its sampling area to test drinking wells for poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, a class of manmade “forever chemicals” that have been linked to cancers, developmental disorders and other health impacts.
Dingell Introduces Legislation to Reauthorize Great Lakes Restoration Initiative
Today, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell (MI-06) and her colleagues on the bipartisan Great Lakes Task Force introduced the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) Act of 2025. This bipartisan bill will reauthorize the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, which is set to expire at the end of FY 2026, for another five years through FY 2031. The bill increases the FY 2026 authorization level from $475 million to $500 million starting in FY 2027.
Navy will test private drinking water wells near the former Grumman plant in Calverton for PFAS
Environmental Advocates Press for More Clean Water Funding From State
Southampton's proposal to close sand mines near homes divides town
Northrop Grumman's soil sample plan for Bethpage Community park needs 'enhancements'
State officials have called on Northrop Grumman to propose a more stringent plan to investigate the extent of contaminated soil at Bethpage Community Park, the former dumping grounds of Grumman Aerospace.
The state Department of Environmental Conservation action comes weeks after the agency accused the Town of Oyster Bay of causing delays to the prolonged cleanup.
EPA restricts cancer-causing chemicals TCE, PCE found in Long Island groundwater
PUSHING HOCHUL TO PROTECT HORSESHOE CRABS
The New York State Legislature passed a bill last June banning the harvesting of horseshoe crabs for bait and biomedical purposes, and environmental groups are pressuring Governor Kathy Hochul to sign the bill before the end of the year.
