EPA Responds To Schumer's Request For Involvement In Northport MS

NORTHPORT, NY — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday returned U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer's letter requesting that the agency get involved in the investigation of Northport Middle School after high levels of chemicals were found on campus in January. While the EPA said it would continue communications with the New York State Department of Health and Suffolk County Department of Health Services, it won't perform its own investigation.

Schumer wrote to the EPA on Feb. 3 after elevated levels of mercury were found in a cesspool 10 feet from the building and high levels of benzene were discovered in soil samples from two septic systems, courtesy of testing done by the environmental firm PW Grosser Consulting. The senator asked the EPA to work with local officials and state regulators to investigate on and near the campus.

Peter Lopez, an EPA regional administrator, told Schumer that his staff reached out to state and county health officials to discuss current and future plans. The EPA hopped on a conference call with both agencies, as well as the state Department of Environmental Conservation and Northport-East Northport Union Free School District on Tuesday. The EPA learned about the environmental firm's investigation and that the firm finished its first sampling phase.

"Based on the information provided by both the NYSDOH and SCDHS, EPA has determined that conducting a parallel federal site investigation at the Northport Middle School would not provide any new information that would not otherwise be identified under the investigation currently being performed by PWGC," Lopez told Schumer in a letter. "The efforts already conducted in addition to the work planned by the school district and PWGC is equivalent to the work that would be performed by EPA as part of a new site investigation."

The EPA has a close working relationship with NYSDOH and SCDHS, Lopez said. He expects the two agencies will address Schumer's concerns, especially with children present.

"EPA's core mission is to protect human health and the environment, and one of our top priorities is protecting children's health," Lopez said.

In January, the school district shut down Northport Middle School for the rest of the academic year. Middle-schoolers were relocated to other buildings throughout the district. Schumer said district officials made the right call, but said the temporary closure needs to be taken advantage of to swiftly find critical answers rooted in science. In his letter to EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler, Schumer called the EPA the correct agency for the job. For now at least, the EPA won't be conducting its own investigation.

"Based on our conversations with the several agencies involved, we think that the best path forward is the one we are currently on," Lopez said.

Schumer responded to the EPA in a statement, saying he will base his next decision on the results of the PWGC investigation.

"We eagerly await the results of the current testing being done by the school district’s environmental contractor, and based on those results, we will urge EPA and state regulators to take any appropriate action to ensure the health and safety of our children and school workers," Schumer said.

The EPA agreed with Schumer that the discovery of hazardous chemicals around the school demands additional data be gathered in order to address the issues and determine the best way to remove the contaminants.

Lopez said preliminary air testing performed by the environmental firm showed no volatile organic compounds were found inside the building or from soil vapor samples, and there was no detection of mercury vapor inside the school. PWGC did find mercury in a sediment sample collected at the bottom of the cesspool, however. The EPA said there is no direct exposure route to people since it was found below grade structure.

The school district reported elevated benzene levels were detected in two different septic systems on the southern and eastern sides of the building, Lopez said. The findings will require the school district, working with the SCDHS, to develop a plan to address the contamination, according to the EPA. The district indicated it intends to submit a plan for the work to SCDHS within the next couple of weeks, Lopez said.

In a separate study, the NYSDOH announced it is expanding its investigation of cancer within the Northport-East Northport Union Free School District. The department said since March 2019, it has been looking into cancer cases, primarily leukemia, reported among the Northport High School Class of 2016. The department recently told Patch it will be looking at cancers among children and adults across the entire school district over a longer time period.