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Sierra Club Calls Budget Agreement on Superfund and Brownfields Irresponsible

Officials of the Sierra Club – Atlantic Chapter called the recently inked budget agreement irresponsible for failing to address the needs of New York’s communities that are threatened toxic waste sites. New York’s program to clean up toxic waste sites, the State Superfund, ran out of money last year. Since that time toxic waste cleanup activities of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation have been severely curtailed, with the Agency only able to finish up work at sites where cleanup was already underway. The DEC has been unable to begin cleanup at 766 new known or suspected contaminated sites. Sierra Club and other environmental groups have been pushing Governor Pataki, Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver to refinance the program for the last six years. In addition Sierra Club and other organizations have requested that state leaders work to an agreement on a program to encourage the cleanup and redevelopment of contaminated sites, or brownfields. Officials of the Club were angered that the current budget agreement fails to address financing for the State Superfund and for the brownfields issue.

“In almost every community in New York State, neighborhoods are threatened by uncontrolled toxic waste sites. For more than a year now DEC has been unable to go out and begin cleanup activities at these sites due to a lack of funds. This budget does nothing to provide relief to these communities,” said Aaron Mair Sierra Club – Atlantic Chapter Chair. ”We call on the three men in the room, Governor Pataki, Senator Bruno and Assemblyman Silver, to go back into the room and not come out until there is a deal on Superfund,” Mr. Mair went on to say.

In addition Sierra Club called on the government leaders to make necessary changes to the state program. One such change would address an error in the definition of “hazardous waste” in the original superfund law that has prevented the DEC from using state superfund money to cleanup a large class of toxic waste sites, the so-called hazardous substance sites. A study commissioned by the legislature in the early ‘90s identified approximately 600 of these sites. Other changes requested by the Sierra Club include: funding to give communities based organizations the ability to carry out brownfield redevelopment planning activities; funding for community based organizations to implement remedial and redevelopment plans; funding to assist community based organizations to adequately participate in the decision-making process governing remediation of sites. Sierra Club also called for an environmental justice study of the program to ensure that low income and minority communities in New York receive equal attention from programs that address toxic waste cleanup.

“Communities of color and low income communities tend to have more contaminated sites and have had less attention from the state programs to clean these sites up,” said Rodney Davis, Sierra Club – Atlantic Chapter Environmental Justice Chair. “These communities are asking loud and clear for resources and the ability to address the brownfields problem. The Governor and the Legislature must not delay action on a brownfields program,” said Davis.

Sierra Club officials state that Club policy definitely opposes legislation proposing to establish in law, regulation or guidance tiered toxic waste cleanup regimens that allow higher concentrations of contaminants at different sites based on projected future site uses. The Sierra Club favors legislation that provides in law for standards and remedy selection criteria that promote clean up of all hazardous substances from contaminated sites to pre-disposal conditions for all environmental media including but not limited to soil, groundwater, surface water and air.

“Some states have weakened toxic waste cleanup requirements in the name of promoting redevelopment of brownfields, we firmly believe that it is possible to promote cleanup and redevelopment of contaminated property without compromising environmental protection,” said Atlantic Chapter Legislative Director, John Stouffer.

For More Information:

Rodney Davis (518) 463 9760

Atlantic Chapter Chairperson, Aaron Mair (518) 505 4059

John Stouffer, Atlantic Chapter Legislative Director (518) 426 9144

Rochester Regional Contact: Hugh Mitchell (585) 244-2625

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