CITY OF NEWBURGH – Local elected officials and Newburgh stakeholders addressed federal representatives with their concerns regarding the PFOA and PFOS water contamination from Stewart Air National Guard base. That happened during an hourlong public hearing, Thursday evening at the Newburgh Armory Unity Center. It was a follow-up on remediation and progress from a hearing in November of 2018.
Concerns from the previous hearing were echoed once again, specifically those criticizing the timeliness of dissemination of information regarding the hearing’s time and location, as well as the lack of progress toward a community led Restoration Advisory Board (RAB).
Ulster County Legislator and Environmental Director for Hudson River Sloop Clearwater Manna Jo Greene said it is unacceptable that the RAB has not been implemented at this point.
“It should’ve met by now and if it’s a priority, you would take action and you’re not,” said Greene. “I know there’s a process, but I ask you to please accelerate that process.”
Federal officials maintain that the RAB is meant to be facilitated and lead by the public, on their own. It is not meant for taking action on remediation, or study efforts. They added that had the public already facilitated the board on their own at this point, it would have mitigated many of the ongoing communication grievances, as these RABs are the primary channel of communication between the two parties at other Superfund sites.
However, Director of the National Guard Lt. General Leon Scott Rice said he would just as much like to expedite the formation of a RAB in Newburgh, but their primary focus at this point is to take action.
“It’s just a means to an end and the end is we all, as citizens of this United States, expect our government to provide us with things like clean water, so that we and our kids can grow in our community,” said Rice. “That’s what I’m really after and that’s why I really want to get this board going because it’s another way for me to get information, for all of us to.”
In terms of updates in remediation and study, the ATSDR has identified Newburgh as a national site for ongoing medical monitoring, investigations will be conducted into the storm runoff paths under 17k, AFFF foams have been removed from usage at all bases nationally and switched to more environmentally friendly ones, ion exchange resin is planned to be added to the carbonic filtration and the final stages of study on the 14 identified sites is moving toward its next stage of full study.
According to Assistant Secretary of Installations, Environment and Energy for the US Airforce, John Henderson, “This is an ongoing national problem.” He expects that it will still take some time before there is enough data to release a comprehensive study to the public. The same goes for the remediation efforts. He said their staff is continuously working and they intend to stay in Newburgh to see these efforts through till the end.
