Long Island

Suffolk

David M. Schwartz

Republican Suffolk lawmakers Tuesday blocked a $1.5 million bond resolution to supervise the cleanup of toxic material dumped at West Hills County Park, which Democrats labeled a partisan attack.
However, the seven-member Republican caucus said the legislature earlier approved $750,000 that parks officials said could be used to start cleanup work immediately.
It was the first time the GOP caucus successfully flexed its muscle to keep the 11-member Democratic majority from getting the needed two-thirds vote for borrowing. 
After the vote, Parks Commissioner Philip Berdolt said his department would begin the cleanup work within a month, but questioned if there was enough money to complete the job. However, county attorneys also disclosed that they were filing legal papers by the end of the day to sue those responsible for the dumping to pay the entire costs.
Later, Jason Elan, County Executive Steve Bellone’s spokesman, said: “The Republican minority should be ashamed at putting politics ahead of the health and welfare of residents who deserve a safe neighborhood park at West Hills.”
But Legis. Robert Trotta (R-Fort Salonga) called the sniping “the biggest joke I heard in my life.” 
The cleanup of the dumping, which began 3 1⁄2 years ago, but wasn’t discovered until 2016, has been delayed while consultants determined the extent of the problem and developed a plan. Although parks officials originally planned to begin work in September, they were delayed while prosecutors negotiated a plea deal with three defendants in the case. Under that deal reached in November, defendants agreed to remove toxic debris, which was estimated to cost as much as $4.5 million, and to spend $34,000 replacing 58 trees knocked down at the park.
Trotta said the county had spent $22,000 of the $750,000 already approved for overseeing the cleanup, using the money for fencing. If Democrats were so concerned, Trotta added, “Why weren’t there trucks over there the day after the plea?”
Republican Legis. Leslie Kennedy said she voted against the West Hills bonding despite voting for the spending because the county had the money to get started with the cleanup. “We have $750,000 available now. We’re not getting the answers we need,” she said. 
GOP lawmakers raised questions about details of the plea deal, why all county costs were not covered by the agreement and whether other defendants were involved.
The GOP caucus blocked borrowing for the park work and two other bonds — one for another hazardous waste removal and the other for park improvements.
Presiding officer DuWayne Gregory assailed the hard-line GOP stance: “This is garbage.”

Politics

POWEST180321

Suffolk Republican lawmakers block $1.5M bond for park cleanup

Suffolk GOP lawmakers block $1.5M park cleanup bond

POWEST180321_WEB

The Suffolk Legislature’s parks committee Wednesday unanimously approved $1.5 million to supervise the cleanup of toxic dumping at West Hills Park.
But legislators raised concerns that a plea deal in the case was not tough enough on polluters and could force the county back to court to recoup its total costs.
Lawmakers say they will ask the district attorney’s office to appear before the legislature to discuss the plea deal before the final vote Tuesday on the spending. The plea deal was reached in November before District Attorney Timothy Sini took office.
“There’s no real penalty here,” said Legis. William Lindsay III (D-Bohemia). “To me, the penalty is insignificant compared to the damage it caused,” making the plea deal nothing but “a cost of doing business.”
Concerns arose when County Attorney Dennis Brown said the plea deal against three defendants, LJM Gardens LLC, of West Hempstead, Kris/D/Lyne3 Contracting Corp., of Garden City Park, and Sweet Hills Stables, of Central Islip, requires the defendants to remove and dispose of 450 truckloads — about 15,750 cubic yards — of tainted material. 
The defendants will dispose of the material at a site approved by the state Department of Environmental Conservation. 
The settlement also required Sweet Hills to pay $34,000 for 58 trees that were improperly removed from the park. The agreement also requires that defendants follow the cleanup plan developed by Suffolk’s outside consultant. It also permits the county to seek payment for additional costs such as supervising the cleanup.
Lawmakers worried the deal allows those who did the dumping to remove the tainted material, and does not clearly spell out that polluters are responsible for all cleanup costs, without having to return to court.
“I don’t want to spend $1 of taxpayer money on this,” said Legis. Robert Trotta (R-Fort Salonga). 
Parks officials asked lawyers for authority to borrow $5.5 million for the cleanup last August. But the department delayed starting the cleanup in September when the district attorney’s office asked for permission to negotiate a plea deal in November. 
Philip Berdolt, parks commissioner, said prosecutors did not consult with the department on details of the plea agreement.
Berdolt said he hopes that if the legislature approves the $1.5 million borrowing for supervising the cleanup, the cleanup can start in April. 
Parks officials say the dumping covers more than 3.5 acres of parkland.
Officials have said hundreds of truckloads of semi-volatile organic compounds, asbestos and metals as well as pesticides banned since the 1960s were detected in the finely pulverized material found at depths from 3 1⁄2 feet to 6 feet.

PODUMP0315

Suffolk panel OKs $1.5 million to oversee West Hills cleanup

Panel OKs $1.5M to oversee West Hills cleanup

IMG4GLO_WEB

Suffolk’s top parks official said the cleanup of illegal dumping at West Hills County Park will begin next month, but that the $750,000 being sought from the county legislature will only be a small part of the total cleanup bill.
Philip Berdolt, parks commissioner, said his department has received the needed permits from the state Department of Environmental Conservation to start the work and the county is hiring a contractor, Branch Services Inc., based in Ronkonkoma, to do the removal of hazardous materials. He said the cleanup will last well into 2018.
“We want to get going fairly quickly,” said Berdolt, before the legislative parks committee voted for the initial funding Wednesday. The full legislature is expected to vote Tuesday to authorize the spending, which was left over from a dredging project at Meschutt County Beach on Peconic Bay.
However, Berdolt also warned lawmakers that the initial funding will be only “a small part” of the overall cost. He said the department is looking to use another $1.6 million for cleanup costs in 2018 that had been set aside for another capital project that has been postponed.
County parks officials say the dumping site totals more than 3.5 acres and District Attorney Thomas Spota last October estimated that hundreds of truckloads of semi-volatile organic compounds, asbestos and metals as well as pesticides banned since the 1960s were found on 8.5 acres that had been leased from the county by Sweet Hills Riding Center. Spota said the finely pulverized material was found at depths from 3.5 to 6 feet and is more toxic than what was found earlier at Roberto Clemente Park in Brentwood.
The county had ended the contract with Sweet Hollow last September for clearing its leased land without permission and the center is suing the county. Sweet Hollow’s attorney could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
Spota’s investigation, meanwhile, is continuing. No one has been charged and no suspects have been publicly named, but Spota has said his office had identified “a number of participants in the dumping scheme.” 
Berdolt said he could not estimate the final cost or an exact timeline for completing the work until the contractor can assess the extent of the work needed. But he hoped the job can be finished by late next year. “Unfortunately, it has displaced a large part of the horse community,” he said, although a few trails remain open. 
Berdolt said he plans to seek a request for proposals for a new stable operator by late this year or early in 2018 so that the stable can reopen when remediation of the dumping is complete.

POPARK0831

Cleanup of dumping at West Hills County Park to begin next month

Dumping cleanup at county park to begin

POPARK0831_WEB

State and local officials are intensifying efforts to stop illegal dumping in Suffolk County after a string of high-profile cases — some involving hazardous materials. 
The initiatives include surveying land holdings, using hidden surveillance cameras in parks, bulking up enforcement staff and expanding the state Superfund law to go after dumpers.
The latest action came last week, when the Suffolk County Legislature amended its dumping and littering code to provide for up to a year in jail for people caught dumping waste and construction debris on county parkland, roads or rights of way.
The move also increased the penalties that can be levied against illegal dumpers to $10,000 for individuals and $15,000 for corporations. Previously, individuals could be fined up to $1,000, while corporations faced a maximum of $5,000.
Legis. Kara Hahn (D-Setauket), who sponsored the recently passed dumping bill, said the legislation allows the district attorney’s office to levy harsher fines, but it also gives that right to park rangers, who previously could only issue $100 tickets for littering.
The bill was one initiative that grew out of an anti-dumping roundtable Hahn hosted earlier this year. “It’s really hard when it’s a slap on the wrist,” she said of dumping penalties.
With its broad acreage, open space and secluded areas, Suffolk County can be an attractive target for both residential tossing and sophisticated dumping schemes.
Cases can range from trash dumped along the road and in parks to cars abandoned in the pine barrens to hazardous construction debris ground up to look like mulch and dumped in sensitive areas. Portions of West Hills County Park were closed after the discovery last year of what Suffolk prosecutors said was finely ground construction debris containing hazardous substances.
The problem of illegal dumping moved into the spotlight in 2014, after thousands of tons of contaminated fill was discovered at Roberto Clemente Park in Brentwood.
Suffolk prosecutors said that dumping scheme extended to three other sites in and around Islip Town. Six men, including two former Islip Town officials, and four companies were indicted in 2014 in connection with the scheme. Of those, four men and one company pleaded guilty and one man was found guilty in a bench trial. The officials were sentenced in October to conditional discharges, while the others are scheduled to be sentenced April 27.
Suffolk County has 46,000 acres of parkland and roughly 30,000 acres of open space from Melville to Montauk. The acreage is so spread out and in some cases hard to access that it’s impossible for every piece of county land to be patrolled, Suffolk County Parks Commissioner Philip Berdolt said. 
“It’s not only our property,” he said. “It’s state. It’s town. It’s county — anywhere people can find a place to dump without the tipping fee.” 
After furniture and household trash were found at Brookhaven’s Tanglewood Park in Coram this year, Brookhaven Town Supervisor Edward P. Romaine ordered a survey of all town open space. 
During a five-week period, town employees found televisions, household trash, burned boats and cars, tires, couches, concrete and oil tanks dumped at 11 locations. The town estimates it has spent more than $21,000 cleaning up or carting away the items.
“We’re having so much of this we have to dedicate more and more staff time, which costs taxpayers,” Romaine said. “This is costing us a small fortune. . . . We need to find some regional solutions.”
This year the county legislature also voted to establish a parks watch program modeled on neighborhood watches. In addition, the county plans to survey parkland for dumping sites. 
The Suffolk County Police Department is evaluating a pilot program that would place surveillance cameras in parks to catch dumping on video. Other municipalities and agencies are considering the same measure. 
Brookhaven Town is particularly concerned because it runs the last large municipal landfill on Long Island that accepts construction and demolition debris. That facility is slated to close in about eight years, and officials fear the dumping problem could increase once it does. 
“There are becoming less and less legitimate places to get rid of construction debris,” Romaine said.
State Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Basil Seggos said the state is mindful of how losing that landfill could increase illegal dumping. 
It’s one reason Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s proposed state budget includes a provision that would expand the state Superfund program to include nonhazardous and solid waste sites where drinking water or the environment could be threatened.
The expansion would be partly funded by the proposed $2 billion Clean Water Infrastructure Act, which also is included in the budget. 
Unlike most of the state, Long Island’s nearly 3 million residents rely on a series of underground aquifers as their sole source of drinking water. But the region’s sandy soil and composition make it easy for chemicals dumped on land to leach into the aquifers, spoiling water supplies. Access to Superfund money and resources could mean faster response and more resources, the DEC said. 
The agency is working with Brookhaven, Riverhead and Southampton towns to train code enforcement officers and building inspectors about how to evaluate dumped items to determine if they could be hazardous enough to require a call to DEC, said Carrie Meek Gallagher, the agency’s regional director.
The DEC is in the midst of revising its regulations pertaining to solid waste, including composting facilities, landfills, recyclers and the transport of waste. Final rules should be out in the fall.
“We heard loud and clear that the community wants to see us do a better job of tracking where this waste goes,” Seggos said. 
Meanwhile, the Pine Barrens Commission, which oversees conservation and development along more than 100,000 acres spanning the towns of Brookhaven, Riverhead and Southampton, has hired three compliance enforcement coordinators to patrol and is seeking state authority to be able to fine dumpers.
The commission also has an agreement with the Air National Guard Unit at Long Island MacArthur Airport to periodically lift abandoned vehicles out of the pine barrens, Central Pine Barrens Joint Planning Commission executive director John Pavacic said.
The commission has no land itself; the property is owned by more than a dozen governments, from the local villages up to the federal government. 
The state legislation that created the pine barrens in 1993 did not give the commission authority to establish penalties for dumping, but that could change. Pavacic said the commission is working with the State Legislature to amend its powers to exact penalties for dumping.
“It is an ongoing issue that you’ll find in various locations in the pine barrens,” Pavacic said. “It can range from folks dumping household garbage to construction and demolition debris. They don’t want to incur the costs of paying the tipping fee.”

LIDUMP0327

Officials intensify efforts against illegal dumping

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State environmental conservation officers and police fanned out around Long Island, the Hudson Valley and New York City last week, finding nine illegal dumping sites and issuing nearly 200 tickets for unlawful disposal, operating without a permit and other violations, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s office announced Monday night.
More than half the tickets were issued on Long Island as part of roadside checkpoints near exits 62 and 66 on the Long Island Expressway. Trucks were followed in three cases and one possible dumping site will be investigated, although authorities would not say where because the case is ongoing. The nine illegal dumping sites were found in the Hudson Valley.
The crackdown took place Feb. 15 and Feb. 16 and involved more than 100 environmental conservation officers, state police, local police agencies and the state Department of Transportation.
Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Basil Seggos said last week’s action was one of several that would happen in the coming months.
“We will continue to do all that we can to keep toxic waste and debris from being dumped in our communities,” Cuomo said in a news release announcing the crackdown.
In some cases, officers were able to follow trucks and witness dumping, the DEC said.
Twenty-eight drivers were ticketed and 167 tickets for misdemeanors and safety violations of the state Environmental Conservation Law were issued. Ten vehicles were also taken out of service for safety concerns. An exact breakdown of the charges was not immediately available Monday night.
Concrete, asphalt, rock, soil and other construction and demolition debris that does not pose an environmental threat can typically be disposed of at permitted facilities. Illegal debris is commingled together and includes items containing asbestos, treated lumber, roofing shingles, contaminated soil and other substances, according to the Department of Environmental Conservation.
The DEC said an upswing in dumping cases had happened on Long Island recently and law enforcement has said it is often done to avoid costly tipping fees.
The region’s nearly 3 million residents rely on underground aquifers as their sole source of drinking water and the toxic waste dumped could taint the resource.
“Those who break New York’s environmental laws to help pad their profits are putting our groundwater at risk, and threatening the quality of our health and environment,” Seggos said in a news release.
Earlier this month, Suffolk County Police Commissioner Timothy Sini said his agency would launch a pilot program to post cameras in park land where dumping might take place. The Suffolk County Legislature also passed bills to survey some park land to look for dumping and to create a parks watch program similar to neighborhood watch.
“We have zero tolerance for anyone who takes advantage of our natural resources here in Suffolk County and we will continue our efforts to bring those who try to justice,” Sini said in a statement about the crackdown.
The developments came after small pockets of debris were found at Tanglewood Park in Coram.
But the county has been plagued by more-sophisticated, larger dumping operations.
Parts of West Hills County Park in Melville near Sweet Hills Riding Center were closed last year after finely processed construction and demolition debris was discovered.
And in early 2014, Roberto Clemente Park in Brentwood was closed after nearly 40,000 tons of construction and demolition debris was found.
Samples taken from both sites found metals, asbestos, polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBS, and other toxics.
The West Hills investigation is ongoing.
In the Brentwood case, six people were indicted.
Thomas Datre Jr., Christopher Grabe, Joseph J. Montuori Jr. and Brett A. Robinson pleaded guilty last year to a variety of felony charges, including dumping contaminated materials. Ronald Cianciulli was found guilty of two felonies and two misdemeanors after a bench trial. Charges against Thomas Datre Sr. were dropped.

News

Region/State

LIDUMP0221

Authorities find 9 illegal dumping sites, issue 200 tickets  on LI, NY

Cuomo’s office: State finds 9 illegal dumping sites in NY

LIDUMP0221_P3H_WEB

The illegal dumping discovered in Coram’s Tanglewood Park wasn’t as extensive or as threatening as what took place in Roberto Clemente park in Brentwood. That’s not the point. 
The point is that it happened, and that it continues to occur on Long Island, in public places where no one is watching, often under the cover of night. It’s a disgrace. The big scandals — like the ones at Clemente and at West Hills County Park in Melville — grab our attention. The smaller ones erode our trust and degrade our quality of life. 
Environmental officials and advocates say illegal dumping has been going on forever — in our parks, in the pine barrens, off the service road of the Long Island Expressway. Mostly, it’s about money — the dumpers, commercial or otherwise, don’t want to pay landfill fees. The junk in Tanglewood included construction debris, vinyl siding, two-by-fours, roof shingles, laminate, carpeting, furniture, tires, concrete and bricks. 
The vexing problem is how to stop it. A cradle-to-grave tracking system would help ferret out large-scale abuses. But there are not enough eyes and ears to catch smaller ones. Suffolk County Legis. Kara Hahn (D-Setauket) has invited parks officials from all levels of government across Long Island to a summit tomorrow to seek solutions. She has proposed legislation to set up a parks watch program, modeled on community watch programs, in which neighbors of county parks would be recruited and encouraged to report suspicious activity. It’s worth considering, but if it’s worth pursuing, then every town, village, city and both counties should pass similar laws for all local parks. 
We Long Islanders love our parks. Perhaps all of us could lend a hand to stop them from being despoiled.

Opinion

Editorials

VPCORAM0126

It’s everyone’s job to watch out for Long Island’s parks

Editorial: Everyone’s job to watch out for parks

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Suffolk authorities are pushing to survey county parkland in search of illegal dumping while they establish a network of residents to watch for suspicious activity in their parks.
The announcement came in Hauppauge Tuesday after the state Department of Environmental Conservation and Brookhaven Town confirmed Monday an investigation into who dumped vinyl siding, crushed concrete, pulverized glass, a monster truck tire, household furniture and other items in several spots at Tanglewood Park in Coram, which is owned by Brookhaven Town.
The site was discovered after a resident called Legis. Kara Hahn (D-Setauket), prompting her to go to the park late last year and notify the town, state and Suffolk County district attorney about the debris she found. The DA investigated but declined to take action, saying the debris appeared to have been dumped over the years.
Hahn said she has introduced legislation to establish a parks watch program that would recruit and encourage residents to watch for and report suspicious activity. It would be modeled after police community watch programs.
“Folks have clearly been systematically dumping, not just dumping but digging holes and covering it up,” Hahn said during a news conference in Hauppauge Tuesday at the Suffolk County Legislature.
Separately, Presiding Officer DuWayne Gregory said he has introduced a bill that directs the county parks department to survey parkland for illegal dumping.
The county has more than 70 parks covering 46,000 acres and the surveys would be done only at spots accessible by trucks, the bill says.
“We are sending the message that we are concerned about parks,” Gregory said, “and we believe our parks are vulnerable to this type of dumping.”
Gregory submitted the bill in late 2016 but tabled it to include input from the park department. It should be brought up again in March. An exact list of affected parks is still being created, he said.
The two bills, if passed, would complement each other, the legislators said. “We need to know what’s there, clean it up and make sure it doesn’t happen again,” Hahn said.
Attempts to reach Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone about the legislation were not successful.
Brookhaven Town on Monday said it would clean up the debris at Tanglewood and turn the case over to its law department. The state Department of Environmental Conservation also said it was investigating. 
Law enforcement said the Tanglewood case is more akin to residential dumping than commercial operations uncovered in past years in Melville and Brentwood.
Portions of West Hills County Park in Melville near the Sweet Hills Riding Center were closed last year after officials found evidence of finely-processed construction and demolition debris. Soil samples contained metals, volatile organic chemicals, asbestos and polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBS. The investigation is ongoing.
In early 2014, authorities closed Roberto Clemente Park in Brentwood after nearly 40,000 tons of construction and demolition debris was found. Authorities said the waste — containing asbestos, metals, pesticides, PCBs and other toxics — had been trucked in from New York City. Four other, connected illegal dumping sites in Islip Town were subsequently uncovered. 
Six people were indicted. Thomas Datre Jr., Christopher Grabe, Joseph J. Montuori Jr. and Brett A. Robinson pleaded guilty last year to a variety of felony charges, including dumping contaminated materials. Ronald Cianciulli was found guilty of two felonies and two misdemeanors after a bench trial. Charges against Thomas Datre Sr. were dropped. 
On Friday Hahn is hosting a roundtable in Brentwood to discuss dumping issues regionally. Parks officials, politicians and environmentalists have been invited. “It is clear to me that we are really scratching the surface of what seems to be a regionwide parks issue,” Hahn said.

LIDUMP0125

Officials push Suffolk park survey for illegal dumping

Pols push illegal park dumping survey 

Suffolk County legislators announce measures targeting park dumping

Newsday

liDUMP0125_video

Joan Gralla and Ted Phillips

People who visited a horse-riding center at a Suffolk County park where authorities say hazardous materials were dumped do not face health risks that require immediate testing, health officials said Friday.
That is the conclusion reached by the state Department of Health and Northwell Health Occupational and Environmental Specialists of Long Island after conducting analyses at West Hills County Park.
“Their evaluation was that the contaminant levels in the samples were similar to soil levels seen in many residential areas,” Suffolk Health Commissioner Dr. James L. Tomarken said Friday night.
“Just the mere presence of those compounds does not make them health risks,” he said.
The kind of exposure that can harm human health varies with each contaminant, how long the exposure lasts and what form it takes, he said.
Tomarken said he wanted to reassure the public after the health department was “flooded” with calls from people who feared their visits to the park had imperiled their health.
The truckloads of “acutely hazardous” debris dumped two months ago at the park were found to have levels of contamination greater than that found in previous dumping at a Brentwood park, Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota said Thursday. 
The contaminants found at Sweet Hills include pesticides, semi-volatile organic compounds, asbestos and metals, at an average depth of 3.5 feet.
Tomarken said the asbestos found is solid and not “friable,” meaning it cannot be pulverized by hand. 
Asbestos that can be crumpled in a fist can cause asbestosis, lung cancer, and mesothelioma if the fibers that are released are inhaled.
Tomarken said his department followed its customary routine in sampling the soil in question, as requested by Suffolk prosecutors.
Samples were sent to an independent lab, which produced the data reviewed by the health department and Northwell. 
“We will continue to advise people as to if they need more information about this situation,” Tomarken said.

TODUMP1015

Officials downplay health risks at West Hills County Park 

Officials: No health risks at  dump site

DA: 'Acutely hazardous' materials found at West Hills County Park

DA: 'Acutely hazardous' materials found at park

Environmental advocates are calling for stricter state regulations when it comes to tracking hazardous materials, a day after Suffolk prosecutors announced toxic findings at a Melville park. 
After soil testing, Suffolk County District Attorney Tom Spota says hundreds of truckloads of construction debris containing pesticides and carcinogens were illegally dumped in West Hills County Park for nearly 10 months. 
Residents say they are concerned with their health being at risk as well as their children's and animals. Environmentalists say stricter regulations and more staff at the Department of Environmental Conservation can help fight illegal dumping. 
Lawmakers are also questioning the issue. 
"This boggles my mind," says state Sen. Carl Marcellino. "Truckloads were allowed in, and no one complained, and no one called? No one said, 'Who are these people?' And stopped them or got a license plate or the name on the side of the truck?"

Toxic dumping in Melville sparks outrage

Suffolk County officials investigating Melville illegal toxic dumping ground

Debris found dumped at a horse-riding center in a Suffolk County park in August has tested positive for “acutely hazardous and hazardous substances” — with contamination at levels greater than that found in a previous dumping of materials at a Brentwood park, Suffolk’s top prosecutor said Thursday.
“Unfortunately, once again I have to announce that yet another and even more serious environmental nightmare has been discovered, and this time it is in the West Hills County Park,” Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota said at a news conference at his Hauppauge offices.
Hundreds of truckloads of material containing pesticides, semi-volatile organic compounds, asbestos and metals had been dumped at the Sweet Hills Riding Center, a West Hills facility that leased about 8.5 acres of the park from the county.
Six “acutely hazardous” substances — pesticide components that have been banned since the 1980s — were found in the debris, the district attorney’s office said.
The material, which was finely pulverized, was discovered at the center at an average depth of 3.5 feet to 6 feet, Spota said.
“That entire area, the Sweet Hills Riding Center, has been severely contaminated by dumping at a magnitude unfortunately even greater than what was found at Roberto Clemente Park in Brentwood and all of the other facilities in the town of Islip and the one in the Town of Babylon,” Spota said, referencing an earlier dumping scheme in which six men and four companies were indicted in 2014.
He said the debris found at the riding center is believed to have come from New York City.
No one has been charged in the case, and while no suspects have been publicly identified by the district attorney’s office, Spota said “we have identified a number of participants” in the dumping scheme.
“I would anticipate we will probably be identifying others,” he said. He declined to provide a timeline of when any charges may be filed.
Mark Smith, a spokesman for the riding center, issued a statement saying the center is cooperating with authorities.
“The Sweet Hills Riding Center, with a 30-year commitment to the equestrian community and families of Long Island, is continuing to cooperate in the ongoing investigation,” Smith said. “This disturbing incident occurred without our knowledge or consent.”
He declined to comment further, citing the ongoing criminal probe.
While the public-health issues from the materials are “unknown” at this point, Spota said it was a concern that the riding center — which operates a summer camp for children — was open at the same time the dumping occurred.
Spota said his office planned to contact the families of the more than 70 children who were known to have attended summer camp at the riding center.
“This area here was wide open and actively used” during the dumping, Spota said.
Dr. James Tomarken, commissioner of the Suffolk County Department of Health Services, said in a statement that his office “just received the raw data” of the soil samples taken from the park from Spota’s office on Thursday afternoon.
The data was then forwarded to the state Health Department with a request for an expedited evaluation “to determine whether there is a risk to public health,” Tomarken said in the statement.
Paul Tonna, chairman and commissioner of the South Huntington Water District, said the dumped materials did not pose a threat to the public water supply.
It would take about 75 years for the groundwater flowing beneath the park to reach the district’s public water-supply well on Gwynne Road, which serves West Hills and lower Melville, he said.
The water district has several treatment systems in place to ensure the water is safe for human consumption, Tonna said.
“We want to assure everybody that their drinking water is 1,000 percent clean,” Tonna said in an interview Thursday. “Nobody has to worry. We are constantly monitoring and testing our water.”
Prosecutors believe the dumping at the riding center began in October 2015 and continued through August.
Tipping fees to dispose of the materials properly at a DEC-approved facility — the closest one being in Pennsylvania — would have cost the haulers $1,500 to $5,000 per truckload, Spota said.
The scheme paved the way for those involved to “make huge profits.”
“The name of the game here is pure greed,” Spota said.
The investigation at the park began in August, after county park rangers contacted officers from the state Department of Environmental Conservation, who “immediately investigated the site,” according to an emailed statement from the DEC.
“The DEC is continuing to work in partnership with the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office to determine the next appropriate steps as this investigation moves forward,” the statement read.
The DEC did not provide further details, such as the location where the materials were processed.
Investigators took more than 100 samples of the debris in late August, after officials sealed part of the park after the discovery of processed construction material. The county closed the riding center after the investigation, and cordoned off about 15 acres of the roughly 900-acre park.
The dumping investigation was reminiscent of Suffolk authorities’ probe into dumping at Roberto Clemente Park and three other locations in and around Islip Town.
Prosecutors said thousands of tons of contaminated fill, including construction and demolition debris, was dumped at the town’s park in Brentwood, a one-acre private lot in Central Islip, a six-home development for veterans in Islandia, and a state-protected wetlands area in Deer Park on the Islip-Babylon border.
Prosecutors said that dumping was motivated by “greed,” to avoid the tipping fees to dispose of the debris legally.
Four of the men indicted — including two former town officials — and one of the companies pleaded guilty, while one of the men was found guilty of charges in connection with that probe.
Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone, in a statement Thursday, vowed to continue the county’s efforts to “undertake all necessary precautions to protect the public and prosecute to the fullest extent those who are responsible for this.”

TODUMP1014

DA: ‘Acutely hazardous’ materials found at West Hills County Park

DA: ‘Acutely hazardous’ materials found at Suffolk park

Suffolk District Attorney Tom Spota announced Thursday that another major toxic dumping site has been confirmed in Melville. 
Testing was done on soil from West Hills County Park in the Town of Huntington. 
Spota says hundreds of tractor-trailer loads of toxic debris were brought to the Sweet Hills Riding Center for over a year and spread out between 3-feet to 6-feet deep in the soil. 
"That entire 8 ½ acres is a crime scene," says Spota. 
The facility is used to board horses, give riding lessons and was home to a summer camp that 70 children attended this year.&nbsp; Spota says he will be contacting the families of children who attended. 
The district attorney did not speculate on who was to blame for the illegal dumping during Thursday's news conference. 
Spota says the area is severely contaminated at a magnitude significantly greater than that at Roberto Clemente Park in Brentwood. 
Environmentalist Adrienne Esposito says anyone who believes they were exposed to the toxic materials should have a blood test taken. 
The riding center has been closed since August, after the processed construction material was found mixed in with the dirt. 
Other toxic dumping sites were found at several Suffolk locations, including Roberto Clement Park in Brentwood and the Veterans Way development in Islandia.

Suffolk DA: Major toxic dumping site confirmed at Melville park

10-13 dump

Investigating, testing and cleaning up the sites in West Hills County Park are necessary [“New dumping probe haunts LI,” News column, Sept. 4]. 
Why, however, did they force the closure of Sweet Hills Riding Center and the instant removal of more than 100 horses from the barn and paddocks? 
There was no due process and very minimal information. This riding center is a positive influence for many children and young adults learning about horses, animals and the responsibility and care they require. The center teaches everyone compassion in a world that sorely lacks this trait. 
There are so few stables left on Long Island. So what happened here? Why do the horses and people who love Sweet Hills have to suffer? 
Virginia Matney, Atlantic Beach 
Editor’s note: The writer has ridden horses on Long Island for more than 50 years.

Letters

OPLTR0909D

Letter: Why did stables have to be closed?

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Wait, what?
Could Long Island have another dumping scandal on its hands?
As it is, construction debris — some of it larded with toxic chemicals — has been found at a community park in Brentwood.
And at a six-home development — for veterans! — in Islandia.
And at an area of state-protected wetlands in Deer Park.
And at a one-acre vacant lot in Central Islip.
All of the above were part of a case brought by Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota that this year led to several convictions, including those of two Islip Town officials.
And now, it appears that Long Island could have another construction-debris site.
This time, it’s at another recreation area, West Hills County Park in Melville, which is off Sweet Hollow Road on a curvy byway that started as a single-lane dirt road.
The area has a history that’s drawn generations of thrill seekers — and at least one ghost hunter that I’m aware of. 
There’s the story of teens who jumped, or otherwise decided to dispatch themselves, from the Northern State Parkway overpass along Sweet Hollow. Honk a car horn, or blink the lights three times the story goes, and ghosts might show up in the rear view mirror. Then there’s the tale of a woman whose spirit lingers nearby. 
There’s a cemetery along Sweet Hollow. And an entrance to the county park. And, a tad further north, a riding center that offers camp and riding lessons and hourlong guided trail rides through the 855-acre park.
For more than a week now, however, police and other Suffolk officials have been scouring a site located near a trail in the riding center. And they’re not looking for Mary or any other urban legend.
Instead, they’re working to solve the mystery of how treated construction materials ended up there. And whether the debris contains potentially dangerous materials.
The investigation began after Suffolk park officials noted a pile of debris near a riding trail. The county called in the state Department of Environmental Conservation, officials said, to take a look at what appeared to be “processed construction material.”
At a news conference late last month, County Executive Steve Bellone said it appeared “ground was being laid and prepared for a larger and more significant dumping of material.”
How long has this been going on? Suffolk officials can’t be sure, although they’re certain it didn’t happen over one night.
So now comes the investigation. And the tests. And, ultimately, the cleanup. On Friday, Suffolk officials said a criminal investigation was ongoing to determine where the material came from, whether it includes dangerous materials and why it was dumped without required clearance from the county.
The county has closed off 15 acres of the park. And the riding center is now closed.
Suffolk officials aren’t casting for spirits along Sweet Hollow Road, they’re handling a criminal investigation. “We will prosecute to the fullest extent of the law those who were responsible for any actions that are damaging and destructive to our parks,” Bellone said.
Which is exactly the way to go.

Columnists

Joye Brown

LIJOYE0904

Joye Brown: New illegal dumping scandal may haunt Suffolk

Brown: New dumping scandal may haunt Suffolk

Suffolk officials sealed part of a county park in West Hills and shut down a horse riding center Friday as they began a criminal investigation into the dumping of construction debris and other materials there.
About 15 acres of West Hills County Park was cordoned off with fencing and yellow police tape. Piles of dumped materials could be seen pushed up against trees on trails leading away from the Sweet Hills Riding Center, a 100-horse stable that the county ordered to cease operating during the investigation.
“Preliminary tests of dumping materials secured and received by Sweet Hills Riding Center . . . contain suspicious materials,” Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone said at a news conference Friday. “We are shuttering operations here immediately.”
But a riding center spokesman said in a statement that it was not complicit in the dumping.
“Recently, some material was dumped near a trail area without our knowledge or consent,” said the spokesman, Mark Smith. “The center is cooperating fully with Suffolk County Parks and all of the agencies that are investigating this incident.”
Smith declined to comment further, citing the ongoing investigation.
The Sweet Hills Riding Center has been located at the 855-acre park since 1982 and provides horse boarding and weeklong summer day camps, among other services. The popular park features nature trails, a dog run and playgrounds, among other amenities.
The investigation began after county parks officials on Aug. 16 noticed the debris near the riding center. 
Bellone said the county contacted the state Department of Environmental Conservation to assess the debris, which appeared to be made up of “processed construction material.” Trees had been knocked down and a fence also had been damaged, according to the county.
The DEC did not respond to a request for comment Friday.
“The Suffolk County Police Department was immediately notified and the area has been sectioned off and is secured, and is being treated as an active crime scene,” Bellone said.
Robert Clifford, spokesman for Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota, said his office received word about the dumping from the police department on Wednesday, and after an investigation, “We confirmed that the dumping of construction and demolition debris has occurred.”
“What’s here didn’t happen overnight,” Suffolk Chief of Detectives Gerard Gigante said. “This dumping has been occurring over a period of time, the length of which we don’t know.”
While it was unclear how much material had allegedly been dumped at the park, Bellone said it appeared that “ground was being laid and prepared for a much larger and significant dumping of material.”
“We will prosecute to the fullest extent of the law those who were responsible for any actions that are damaging and destructive to our parks,” Bellone said.
Police Commissioner Timothy Sini said detectives from his agency’s environmental crimes unit, attached to the district attorney’s office, have begun looking into the case. He asked that anyone who might have information about the dumping call the department’s Crime Stoppers hotline at 800-220-TIPS.
“We will get to the bottom of this, and we will hold those responsible accountable for these egregious actions,” Sini said.
Testing of the material, which has not yet begun, is expected to be completed in a week to 10 days, he said.
Clifford said the results will be made public.
“As we did in the Roberto Clemente Park case, we will advise the park-going public about the contents of the materials as soon as we receive the analytical results of the tests done on the collected samples,” he said.
Bellone said there was “no evidence or indication of any danger to anyone, but pending testing, we’re going to take every precaution that we can to make sure that people and these animals are protected.”
The dumping investigation announced Friday is reminiscent of Suffolk authorities’ probe into dumping at Roberto Clemente Park and three other locations in and around Islip Town.
Six men and four companies were indicted in December 2014 after prosecutors said thousands of tons of contaminated fill, including construction and demolition debris, was dumped at the town’s park in Brentwood, a one-acre private lot in Central Islip, a six-home development for veterans in Islandia and a state-protected wetlands area in Deer Park, on the Islip-Babylon border.
Prosecutors said that dumping was motivated by “greed,” to avoid the tipping fees to dispose of the debris legally.
Four of the men — including two former town officials — and one of the companies pleaded guilty, and one of the men was found guilty of charges in connection with that probe.
“I think we’ve all become aware because of Roberto Clemente about this sort of nefarious work that’s been happening,” Bellone said Friday. “Suffolk County is a very big place ... and it’s clear that there are certain people who think they can profit by dumping on these treasures that belong to every single one of us in Suffolk County.”
The parking lot of the riding center was bustling Friday as employees gathered outside the stable area, which was marked off with yellow police tape. Trailers laden with horses drove away from the now-shuttered stables.
Bill Leffert, 65, of Babylon, went to the center to check on his 15-year-old quarterhorse, Chocolate, after his riding instructor called to tell him about the dumping investigation.
“I didn’t think it was going to be a big deal,” Leffert said. “I didn’t think we would have to evacuate.”
He spent part of Friday searching for a new place to board Chocolate.
“He’s going to feel a little displaced for a few days,” he said. “Horses get used to a certain environment.”

Crime

LIDUMP0827

Dumping probe finds ‘crime scene’ at West Hills park, officials say

Officials: Dumping probe finds ‘crime scene’ at park

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A portion of West Hills County Park has been sealed off due to apparent illegal dumping in the vicinity of the Sweet Hills Riding Center. 
Park officials say mounds of dirt that don't belong there have been found inside the county facility. Officials say it looks like it is composed of finely ground construction materials mixed with dirt. 
Authorities say it appears that trees were cleared to make way for the apparent illegal dumping. 
Suffolk Police Commissioner Tim Sini said at the park Friday that "it is clear this is a crime scene." He said tests on the soil will be performed. 
Suffolk Executive Steve Bellone says the dumping was caught just in time. 
"There are indications that ground was being laid and prepared for much larger, more significant dumping of material," says Bellone. 
A spokesperson for Sweet Hills issued a statement saying, "Some material was dumped near a trail area without our knowledge or consent. The center is cooperating fully with all of the agencies that are investigating."

Part of Melville park sealed off amid illegal dumping probe

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