The Liberty Site is a contaminated 30-acre parcel of land located within the County of Nassau, Town of Oyster Bay at Farmingdale, NY. The United States EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) has established a "preferred remedy" for the soils and groundwater at the site. Unfortunately, we at CCAF (Concerned Citizens Association of Farmingdale) feel the EPA's plans have numerous shortfalls.

At the Massapequa Preserve, the EPA is proposing to clean up Pond A of this land to the soil cleanup level it has proposed at the Liberty Industrial Site. We at CCAF do not believe these levels are acceptable. This is an environmental preserve, a natural wetlands, that is leased to Nassau County and should be cleaned up to the New York State DEC (Department of Environmental Conservation) guidelines for surface water, ground water and soil. Having the facts from the analytical data would warrant a cleanup of all five ponds, not just Pond A.

Currently there is one groundwater treatment facility operating at the Liberty Site. There are two more proposed facilities, the first by Woodward Parkway Elementary School and the second just north of Farmingdale High School. The treatment facility just north of the high school that is proposed will not capture the leading edge of the plume, thereby disconnecting the plume. This will allow contaminants above NYS DEC guidelines for drinking water to continue to migrate towards the South Farmingdale/Massapequa water district drinking wells. EPA laws and regulations state they are to remediate to drinking water standards. Their own analytical data states that these contaminants are near or below DEC guidelines. If the EPA institutes this plan, we would want the record of decision to reflect that the federal government would be required to install wellhead treatments in the South Farmingdale/Massapequa water wells. This should take place if and when contamination reaches these drinking water wells. Further, the federal government should be responsible for paying the maintenance, monitoring and utilities to run said system. These costs should not be passed onto the taxpayers of Farmingdale and Massapequa.

On the eastern-most 10 acres of the Liberty Site, only 12 groundwater locators were used for analytical data and 18 soil samples were also included in this data. Unfortunately, CCAF can only find six groundwater locators and six soil locations in the EPA's 1995 Remedial Investigative/Feasibility Study and the June 2000 continued study of same. There are several buildings located on these 10 acres. Buildings E, F, H and U, no soil samples have been taken beneath these four buildings, yet these buildings contain 44 subsurface features. The features in Buildings E and F are over 60 years old and could be leaking into the soil beneath these buildings. These 10 acres also contain the northern and eastern leaching chambers. The 1995 Feasibility Study states that these fields contain the highest quantified concentrates of cadmium and cyanide on this site. These leaching fields are mainly located under buildings or blacktop. The soils have been noted to be stained around the leaching chambers and under pipes leading to them. It is not known if these chambers are still in use. If they are not, they would not be a continued source of groundwater contamination. Due to the covering of these pipes by buildings and/or blacktop, they would not be contributing to any down gradient contamination, but they warrant full investigation of the soil around and below these leaching chambers. There are 40 chambers and they are approximately eight to 10 feet wide by 10 to 12 feet deep. We would like the record of decision to state that they will do sufficient testing under and around these buildings and leaching chambers. The EPA's Preferred Plan calls for the capping of 9375 acres where cadmium and chromium exceed the cleanup levels the EPA has stated is protective to groundwater. We support an SL-3 cleanup which calls for no capping and removal of 73,000 cubic yards of soil. The acceptance of this alternative is based on a new health assessment that would state an SL-3 cleanup is a residential cleanup.

The character of the community of Farmingdale has evolved into one that is mostly residential in nature. The last thing we need is deed restrictions and commercial development of this property. In 1995 the Town of Oyster Bay passed a resolution stating they would accept no less than a residential cleanup. We are questioning why the EPA is not proposing the same.

We respectively request you submit all your comments to: Mr. Lorenzo Thantu, Project Manager, US EPA Emergency and Remedial Devision, 290 Broadway, 20th Floor, New York, NY 10007, e-mail address thantu.lorenzo@epamail.gov, facsimile 212-637-3966. We would also request a copy be sent to CCAF at Post Office Box 4053, Farmingdale, NY 11735.The public comment period deadline is Jan. 25.

We cordially invite you to attend the final EPA meeting concerning the Liberty Superfund Site Wednesday, Jan. 9 starting at 7 p.m. at the Farmingdale Public Library, Merritts Road, Farmingdale.

We thank you in advance for your time and consideration to this important decision for the people of Farmingdale.

Michael Grello, President,

Concerned Citizens Association of Farmingdale