Mark Harrington

State Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Alexander "Pete" Grannis plans to "crack the whip" on investigation and cleanup of dozens of languishing toxic gas-plant sites on Long Island and around the state, enlisting regional DEC offices to attack the problem, he said in an interview.

Grannis, a former state assemblyman with a track record of aggressive environmental work, acknowledged that historically the DEC hasn't acted quickly enough to make sure the sites get cleaned up. He was named to the post in April by Gov. Eliot Spitzer.

Drinking water found contaminated with Freon 12;
problem not linked to toxic leaks at MGP site

State health officials and consultants at a public meeting last week were quick to note that two public drinking water wells a stone's throw from a highly toxic utility gas-plant site in Hempstead are not contaminated with waste from the plant's toxins. Even under the worst of circumstances, contamination won't reach the 500-foot-plus deep wells for 16 to 175 years, they said.

Report for KeySpan, owner of Hempstead facility, finds possible exposure paths but no imminent threats

A former utility gas-plant site in Hempstead once classified by the state as requiring "no further action" has spawned a nearly 4,000-foot plume of toxic material and could present exposure pathways to people at or near the site, according to a recently released report.

KeySpan Corp., the owner of more than two dozen former utility gas-plant sites on Long Island, yesterday sought to allay concerns about one of the largest sites as community members prepare to meet about it in Hempstead next week. The Hempstead manufactured natural gas plant, located off of Intersection and North
Franklin Streets, has spawned a nearly 4,000-foot by 600-foot plume from the 7.5 acre site, a recently released report said.

KeySpan plans a meeting on the final remediation report at Adelphi University on June 28 at 7 p.m., in the University Center rooms 202 and 203.