More than a dozen notices of claim filed with Town of Wheatfield over landfill

Stag Liuzza, LLC is representing several families seeking damages for exposure to chemicals from Love Canal that were moved to a Wheatfield landfill. Town Supervisor Robert Cliffe confirmed to that 16 notices of claim have been filed with the Town of Wheatfield, each for $60 million. He said the notices of claim say residents tested their properties in July and discovered chemical contamination, which they believe leached from the Niagara Sanitation Landfill. The residents claim it made them sick. Love Canal waste was moved to the landfill in the 1960’s. The DEC tested the landfill during 2012 and 2013 and determined the waste needed to be removed and destroyed. 80 truckloads of Love Canal waste was removed from the landfill and now Supervisor Cliffe says the worst is gone. The remediation finished last year. The landfill is still classified as a significant threat to public health. The DEC is getting ready to do more testing this spring to see if the landfill needs to be cleaned out or a cap put on it. Residents questioned the town board Monday night about why it is taking so long for the town to put up a fence around the landfill. Supervisor Cliffe said the town was at the site earlier in the day putting up about a dozen “no trespassing” signs up. Cliffe explained the site belongs to the DEC now so they need DEC permission before moving ahead with the fence. “There’s nothing I would love more than to put that fence up,” he said.