Neighbors near the Niagara Sanitation Landfill have said enough is enough. Residents in North Tonawanda unknowingly lived near a significant amount of toxic waste that was removed from the Love Canal dumpsite in the late 1960s and disposed of in their community. Many neighborhood children played on the landfill property where no warning signs were posted. Neighbors have suffered from significant health impacts over the years.
In recent months, neighbors have received information that contamination from the landfill may have migrated offsite and into residences. “We have what I think is a fairly good statistically significant set of scientific data that’s produced by a certified laboratory that shows unusually high levels of organic chlorine pesticides and PCBs that exceeds New York state residential use standards,” said Boston Chemical Corp. President Marco Kaltofen.
Governor Cuomo of New York directed the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) to test residential properties adjacent to the landfill for offsite migration in April 2017. The testing completed by the NYSDEC to date has been limited to surface soil sampling and the results have not been provided to residents. Residents are hopeful that the NYSDEC will do additional residential sampling of groundwater and inside homes.
“If soil testing was the only thing that we did, we may not have understood the gravity of the situation out here. So, that’s why we did groundwater testing and we noticed that there may be intrusion from basements and things like that,” said Ashley Liuzza, an Attorney for Stag Liuzza, L.L.C. The data shows indoor contamination was on average 10 to 100 times higher than outdoor samples, with one home at 5,000 times higher. It’s clear from the results gathered by residents’ expert that surface soil sampling alone will not demonstrate the true impact on this community.
Stag Liuzza is committed to protecting the community of North Tonawanda and its residents. If you live near the Niagara Sanitation Landfill located on the border of Wheatfield, NY and North Tonawanda, NY, contact our office to discuss your legal options at (504)593-9600 or complete the form below.
Pictured above, a basement sump from a Nash Road home. Testing of the sump found chlorinated pesticides including DDD, Aldrin and benzene hexachlorides
