Navy hosting meeting to update on Grumman cleanup progress

The Navy is hosting a community meeting on Nov. 15 to update residents on hazardous waste cleanup projects in the Bethpage area to treat soil and groundwater contamination related to aerospace researching, testing and manufacturing operation dating to the 1930s.

The meeting begins with an open house at 6:30 p.m. and will be held at the Bethpage Senior Community Center, 103 Grumman Rd. W. in Bethpage.

The Navy and what is now Northrop Grumman operated on the 600-acre site in Bethpage until 1996, supporting war and space efforts. Groundwater contamination was discovered in the late 1940s, and volatile organic chemicals were found in the mid-1970s. The site was added to the state Superfund list in 1983 and is subject to a number of cleanup plans to remove contaminated soil and treat a complex series of groundwater plumes, one of which has migrated about four miles south of the site.

Navy officials and contractors will give updates on plans to treat hot spots of concentrated contaminants, as well as the plumes, and some other treatment remedies.

Documents about the cleanup efforts are on file at the Bethpage Public Library at 47 Powell Ave. or online at go.usa.gov/DyXF.