New York Must Take Action on Pervasive PFAS Chemicals, Leaching from Landfills + Contaminating Water

SENECA FALLS, NY (09/29/2022) (readMedia)-- TO: Editorial Boards

FROM: Seneca Lake Guardian

DATE: September 2022

RE: New York Must Take Action on Pervasive PFAS Chemicals, Leaching from Landfills + Contaminating Water

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Introduction:

Toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, also known as "forever chemicals'' are a family of thousands of chemicals found in many everyday products including GORE-TEX, non-stick pans, popcorn bags, and more. Instead of breaking down, they build up in the environment and in our bodies, often entering through drinking water sources contaminated by landfills. In our bodies, these chemicals primarily build up in the blood, kidney and liver. According to the CDC, exposure to PFAS is linked to harmful health impacts such as cancer, liver damage, decreased fertility, increased risk of asthma and thyroid disease, to name a few.

Landfills are one of four major sources of PFAS in drinking water including: fire training/fire response sites, industrial sites, and wastewater treatment plants/biosolids.

Seneca Meadows – New York State's largest landfill – produces 75 million gallons of PFAS laden leachate every year, only one-third of which is treated by the landfill. The rest of the untreated leachate is shipped off to Watertown, Steuben County, Chittenango, and Buffalo – which may or may not be testing and removing PFAS before it ends up in waterways that may serve as drinking water sources. For-profit landfills like Seneca Meadows push the cost of treatment off to localities, making them pay to clean up their mess while lobbying to expand even further.

New York State must take immediate steps to keep PFAS out of our drinking water:

  1. The Governor and Department of Environmental Conservation must shut down Seneca Meadows landfill by its original closure date of 2025 to stem the tide of PFAS-laden leachate.
  2. The Department of Health must establish drinking water limits for PFAS as close to zero as possible
  3. The Legislature must pass the "PFAS Surface Water Discharge Disclosure Act" – which would require annual testing for all facilities permitted to discharge water. There are no federal or state regulations currently requiring PFAS disclosures from all facilities that might be discharging it.

Background

Seneca Meadows landfill, located in Seneca Falls is the largest of 27 landfills in New York State. It is permitted to accept 6,000 tons of waste and produce up to 200,000 gallons of polluted leachate – which is formed when rainwater filters through waste – per day. A quarter of the landfill – which stands at 30 stories tall – is trash from NYC, followed by four other states.

Local Law 3 requires Seneca Meadows to stop receiving waste and halt operations by December 31, 2025. However, Waste Connections, the Texas-based parent company of Seneca Meadows Inc., contributed around $280,000 in 2021 to pro-landfill candidates who won seats on the Town Board and County races and are now supporting the Valley Infill: SMI's planned seven-story high expansion. The expansion would keep the landfill operating through 2040.

That means if this expansion moves forward, the already staggering amount of PFAS-laden leachate coming from this skyscraper of garbage and being trucked to New Yorkers' drinking water across the State will only increase.

There are shockingly few regulations on the State level and absolutely zero on the federal level to limit the amount of PFAS in our drinking water, even though the EPA has known these chemicals are toxic for the last 20 years.

Earlier this year, Assembly Members Richard Gottfried and Steve Englebright wrote a letter to State Health Commissioner Mary Bassett urging the Department of Health to set drinking water limits for PFAS, "as close to zero as possible," before a June 19th deadline to publish draft regulations establishing new PFAS drinking water standards. The State failed to meet its deadline.

Three months later, to date, Senator Rachel May and Assembly Member Anna Kelles announced legislation – the "PFAS Surface Water Discharge Disclosure Act" – which would require annual testing for all facilities permitted to discharge water. There are no federal or state regulations currently requiring PFAS disclosures from all facilities that might be discharging it.

Senator May and Assembly Member Kelles's bill is hardly radical in terms of determining the scope of this problem: Three years ago, California intiatied a testing regimen of public water sources, specifically targeting those adjacent to landfills.

About Seneca Lake Guardian:

Seneca Lake Guardian is a New York State Not-for-Profit Corporation with 501(c)(3) and is dedicated to preserving and protecting the health of the Finger Lakes, its residents and visitors, its rural community character, and its agricultural and tourist related businesses through public education, citizen participation, engagement with decision makers, and networking with like-minded organizations.

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For more information, please contact Katie Hazen, 312-259-3306, katie@pythiapublic.com