Cleanup remedies at five Long Island hazardous waste sites “continue to be effective in protecting human health,” the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said this week, though some of the toxic areas need continued monitoring. 

The agency conducted the federally mandated reviews at Superfund sites located in Glen Cove, Port Jefferson Station, Franklin Square and East Farmingdale. Across New York, New Jersey and Puerto Rico, 32 federal Superfund sites were appraised, which happen every five years, the EPA said. 

Stephen McBay, a spokesman for the EPA, said in an emailed statement on Monday that Superfund sites on Long Island “did not identify any new or immediate risks to people or the environment.”

When recommendations were made, they often involved continued monitoring or actions to make sure “cleanup measures remain effective over time,” he said.

Adrienne Esposito, executive director of Farmingdale-based advocacy group Citizens Campaign for the Environment, said there has been an immense amount of cleanup at the five sites, but “we shouldn’t be anxious to wrap it up and walk away.”

Long Island’s drinking water comes from its aquifer system, which lies beneath the surface.

“We must be extremely judicious when remediating these contaminants that we consider all routes of public exposure,” she said in a phone interview.

Water utilities often have to pay to remove chemicals from the water, and sometimes, she said, the utilities might not be able to remove all contaminants.

“There are times when they can’t get the contaminant down to zero,” Esposito said. “They can get it down to drinking water standards, but that’s not zero. So it’s better to protect the aquifer.”

The EPA’S National Priorities List, often referred to as the Superfund list, has more than 20 sites on Long Island, according to the EPA. More than 10 sites have been removed from the list. Long Island has more than 300 state Superfund sites, according to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. 

Here’s more on each of the recently reviewed sites:

Port Jefferson Station: Lawrence Aviation Industries

Starting in the late 1950s, Lawrence Aviation Industries in Port Jefferson Station manufactured sheet metal used in aeronautics and other items at the facility.

The facility had a drum-crushing area and an “earthen lagoon” that held wastewater, the EPA said. A study identified a volatile organic compounds groundwater plume emanating from the facility and into a residential area. The site also had contaminated soil.

Remediation efforts have included excavating approximately 17,000 tons of soil and removing more than 2,300 tons of debris containing asbestos, the agency said. Ten decrepit manufacturing buildings on the site were demolished in 2024.

The EPA partially removed a soil portion of the site from the National Priorities List in 2025, but the groundwater plume remains part of the cleanup, officials said.

The report said  polluted groundwater continues to enter into Old Mill Pond, but trichloroethylene, or TCE, concentrations have been reduced.

“Given the successes observed so far, the remedy is functioning as intended, although cleanup goals have not been reached,” the report said.

East Farmingdale: Circuitron Corp.

Located in an industrial and commercial area of East Farmingdale, the Superfund site occupies about an acre, according to the report. It’s close to Bethpage State Park and Republic Airport.

From 1961 to 1986, a building on the lot was used to produce electric circuit boards, the EPA said. Waste was released into “leaching pits, cesspools and storm drains outside and inside the building.”

The EPA later said contamination was found in several areas, including groundwater and soil. Contaminants included volatile organic compounds (VOCs), such as tetrachloroethene (PCE), which has been linked with certain cancers. The agency also reported the presence of metals, including arsenic and lead.

Since the area was designated a Superfund site in 1989, cleanup efforts have included the removal of approximately 55 drums of toxic liquids and 1,200 tons of contaminated soil, as well as groundwater and soil remediation, according to the EPA.

Circuitron Corp. left the site in 1986, the building was destroyed and the area has not been used for manufacturing since, the EPA said.

The area’s “soils and sediments did not represent a significant risk to human health and the environment,” the EPA said, citing a risk assessment. The groundwater contamination is not considered to be a source of human exposure because residents in the area use public water.

The EPA said its “remedy is functioning as intended” and “the potential exposure pathways for soil and groundwater have been interrupted or eliminated.”

Soil sampling showed groundwater contamination remains limited to the southwest portion of the site, the EPA said.

Franklin Square: Genzale Plating

The Genzale Plating Superfund Site is in a mostly residential area of Franklin Square, the EPA said. It consists of a former metal plating facility that included a since-demolished office building and a backyard, as well as groundwater contamination outside the property.

Genzale Plating Co., in operation from 1915 to 2000, used the site for several operations, including electroplating vehicle antennas and ballpoint pens, according to the EPA. But the facility disposed of wastewater laced with heavy metals and other contaminants in four “leaching pits” on the grounds. Contaminants such as TCE, nickel, lead, and copper were found in the soil. The groundwater had VOCs and metals.

The EPA said the “most significant public health risk results from the ingestion of groundwater, inhalation of groundwater VOCs” and “direct contact and ingestion of soils.” But those issues have been addressed in part because residents in the area receive drinking water from the Franklin Square Water District and the area has fencing.

Work on the site has included removing more than 1,000 tons of toxic soil and soil vapor extraction, the EPA said.

According to the review, one monitoring well at the site had VOC concentrations above both state and federal levels. The report said more data is needed to see if “contaminant levels are rebounding at this location.”

Glen Cove: Li Tungsten

Between 1942 and the mid-1980s, the Li Tungsten Superfund Site in Glen Cove was used for activities including the handling of tungsten ore, officials said. 

The location, which includes portions of nearby Captain’s Cove properties, was found to have metal contaminants in the soil, including barium, arsenic and mercury. Groundwater at the facility was also contaminated.

Restoration work at the site has involved removing roughly 158,000 cubic feet of polluted soil and the dredging of radioactive “hot spots” from Glen Cove Creek, the EPA said.

Today, commercial and residential development is underway on the site and in nearby areas along the creek, the EPA said.

In the five-year review, the EPA identified the need for additional monitoring of increased arsenic concentrations at a specific groundwater area. It also recommended additional testing to evaluate elevated levels of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, in groundwater wells at the Captain’s Cove property, the agency said.

Glen Cove: Mattiace facility property

Set in Glen Cove, the Superfund site includes the Mattiace Facility Property and a VOC-contaminated groundwater plume that extends about 700 feet beyond the area, the EPA said. The area surrounding the site includes a sewage treatment plant, commercial businesses and other hazardous sites, as well as public beaches and Nassau County Garvies Point Preserve.

Between the mid-1960s and into the late 1980s, Mattiace Petrochemical Co. utilized organic solvents, which can cause cancer, officials said. Liquid waste was discharged into a wet well and, at times, into tanks or a leaching pool at the facility.

The facility was later found to have groundwater and soil contamination, including PCE and TCE, from multiple sources.

As a result, the EPA removed roughly 100,000 gallons of hazardous materials in the 1980s, and the removal of pesticide hot spots in the 1990s, the agency said. Other actions included groundwater treatment and soil vapor extraction.

Human exposure to contaminants has been addressed because “surface soils are not contaminated, and soil vapors have not been found inside residences,” the agency said. Drinking water is not impacted by the groundwater contamination.

Still, the five-year review suggested further evaluation to assess potential groundwater contamination from areas south of the property. Currently, that area is a part of the state’s Brownfield Cleanup Program, the EPA said. 

Tiffany Cusaac-Smith is a general assignment reporter for Newsday. She previously worked at USA TODAY and is an alum of Howard University.