Protect Long Island Drinking Water - Citizens Campaign for the ...

2012Protect Long IslandDrinking WaterProperly Dispose of HouseholdHazardous Waste (HHW)Long Island is a sole-sourceaquifer region, which meansr e s i d e n t s r e l y o ngroundwater for 100% ofour drinking water. A clean,healthy aquifer system is vitalt o m ain t aining L ongIslanders’ quality of life.C o n t a m i n a t i o n o fgroundwater from improperhousehold hazardous wastedisposal negatively impactsp u b l i c h e a l t h , o u renvironment and pollutesgroundwater supplies.What is Household Hazardous Waste?Household Hazard Waste (HHW) refers to any commonlyfound household items with the potential to ignite, cause aviolent chemical reaction, be a dangerous corrosive, or beharmful to human health. The average person accumulates 6pounds of household hazardous waste per year, and every yearover 100,000 tons of this waste is disposed of improperly inNew York. Sometimes, the waste is dumped directly intostreams, or into backyards where it is carried to localwaterways and seeps into the aquifer. More often, HHW isthrown away and ends up in a landfill or an incinerator.Incinerated waste creates ash and air pollution, which can stillcontain heavy metals. For Long Island, the dangerouschemicals in improperly disposed of HHW end up ingroundwater, the Long Island Sound, Peconic Estuary, or SouthShore Estuary Reserve. i Every chemical product we use hasresidue that enters these waterways.

The Most Common Examples of HHW:Study of VOCs in Nassau anAerosol ContainersAntifreeze and Brake FluidsAutomotive BatteriesElectronics and Household BatteriesHousehold Cleaners and Personal ProductsMedicinesMercuryMotor Oil and Automobile ProductsPaint Thinners, Strippers and other SolventsWood PreservativesPesticidesVOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS FROM HHWARE CONTAMINATING LONG ISLAND GROUNDWATERVolatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), a source of which are HHW, are being found withincreased frequency in Long Island’s aquifers. VOCs used in the most common products ofHHW were found at high concentration in the Magothy Aquifer, which is Nassau County’smain source of drinking water. These findings prompted the Environmental Protection Agency(EPA) to add areas of Hicksville, New Cassel, Westbury, Hempstead and Salisbury to the list ofSuperfund National Priorities in September, 2011. iiThe three most common VOCs, Tetrachloroethene (PCE), Trichloroethene (TCE), and 1,1,1-Trichloroethane (TCA), which are found in a range of products including paint strippers, officesupplies, aerosols and cleaning products, were detected in Suffolk County groundwater athigher levels in 2005 than in 1987. In fact, VOC levels were 4 times higher in 2005, with PCEhaving increased over 100% and TCE increasing 150% in 18 years. Many of the wells testedthroughout Long Island had elevated levels of VOC contamination.Increased levels of VOC contamination along with substantive increases in nitrates andpesticides have created drinking water contamination problems. Inadequate infrastructureexists to deal with or treat the bi-products of HHW. The combination of increased demandfor water as Long Island’s population grows and increased contaminants from HHW have ledto a “continuous and gradual decline” in water quality identified in the Suffolk CountyComprehensive Resources Management Plan. iii

d Suffolk Wells ivVOC’s DetectedIMPACTS ON HUMAN HEALTHHHW products are toxic and corrosive, and can be carcinogenicand contain heavy metals. They can cause both acute and chronichuman health problems, including skin burns/rashes, cancer, birthdefects, kidney and liver damage, nervous system disorders, andrespiratory problems when absorbed through the skin or ingested.When these chemicals enter the drinking water supply, theyaccumulate and residents are exposed to low levels of harmfulcontaminants every day. Some common examples include: vMethylene Chloride – Found in paint removers, pesticides anddegreasers; it is a possible carcinogen which aggravates heartconditions and may cause heart attacks.Methanol – Found in antifreeze, paint and windshield wiperfluid; it is highly toxic and direct exposure can cause blindnessand death.Cadmium – Found in batteries and paint, this heavy metalbioaccumulates and causes kidney and bone damage.Benzene – Found in paint removers, varnishes and gasoline; itis a type of petroleum that is carcinogenic and quicklyabsorbed by the blood, poisoning bone marrow and causingcentral nervous system disorders.USING LESS HAZARDOUS PRODUCTSThe easiest way to reduce individual HHW is to have individuals use less hazardous products.Promoting less toxic products coupled with educating the consumer on the proper use anddisposal of a hazardous product at the time of purchase would mitigate many of the problemsassociated with HHW contamination. Many states, including Washington, Oregon andVermont, have implemented programs where the public is notified if a product they arepurchasing is hazardous, less hazardous alternatives are promoted, and the most harmfulproducts are carefully regulated or removed from shelves entirely. Suffolk County passed a lawnearly 20 years ago requiring stores to post signs notifying customers of hazardous products andproper disposal methods, yet the law has never been implemented. Notifying the public andgiving them option to make smart, safe choices for themselves and their communities is essentialto diminishing the amount of toxic waste that get dumped into Long Island’s soil andwaterways. Many harmful products, from pesticides to MTBE to mercury, were once commonin HHW and are now regulated and removed from everyday products and retail stores. Saferalternatives for many of the most common HHW products exist, and consumers should begiven every opportunity to be proactive about their choices.

STOP THROWING OUT POLLUTANTS (STOP) DAYSOne thing municipalities and townships throughout Long Island are doing to alleviate the problem isholding STOP days, at which residents can bring in their hazardous waste for proper disposal. Thesehave been widely publicized, often on municipalities’ websites, and are a method of educating thepublic on what constitutes hazardous waste, the public health risks they pose, and why properdisposal is necessary.All Long Island towns host resident STOP days. Some towns, such as Huntington and Brookhaven,have a permanent drop-off point where residents are able to bring products. Other towns, such asSmithtown and Babylon, designate several days a year were residents can bring HHW to the townfor safe disposal. The Town of Oyster Bay, for example, has collected approximately 14,000 55gallon drums of hazardous waste from over 96,000 households since their STOP program began. viWhile these programs are a good start, there needs to be a more coordinated effort on the part ofthe townships and New York State to provide a uniform policy for HHW disposal. Eachmunicipality has a different method of collecting hazardous waste, and some are better publicizedand better attended than others. These STOP programs have generated meaningful publicparticipation, but they need to be more consistent and more widely publicized in order ensure largescaleresident participation.For more information on HHW programs in your area contact your local officials or visit:http://www.dec.ny.gov/chemical/8485.htmli. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Division of MaterialsManagement. Managing and Disposing of Household Hazardous Waste. http://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/materials_minerals_pdf/hhwma.pdfii. United States Department of Environmental Conservation. EPA Adds Areas of LongIsland to the Superfund List; Volatile Organic Compounds found in 11 Major DrinkingWater Wells. 15 Septemer, 2011. http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/0/E03A1C90BE899D158525790C0062B769.iii. Amper, Espostio, McDonald, Gobler, C., McAllister, &DeLuca. Water Worries:Suffolk Report Documents Decline Without Prescription for Remedy. http://www.pinebarrens.org/pdfs/FINALWaterWorries6.11.pdfiv. Eckhart, D. & Stackelberg, P. Relation of Ground-Water Quality to Land Use onLong Island, New York. 1995. http://info.ngwa.org/gwol/pdf/952964078.PDFv. Bowen, C. Household Hazardous Products and Hazardous Waste: A Summary forConsumers. University of Pennsylvania. 1998. http://pubs.cas.psu.edu/FreePubs/PDFs/xi0014.pdfvi. Town of Oyster Bay Department of Environmental Resources. 2000 S.T.O.P andElectronic Waste Recycling Program. http://www.oysterbaytown.com/vertical/Sites/%7B7D6BDBFB-65E8-4A80-B369-DE0267DC78CB%7D/uploads/%7BA1018F0F-3C61-4E24-9100-B1438A4C41E0%7D.PDF.Long Island/Metro New York225-A Main StreetFarmingdale, NY 11735Phone: 516-390-7150Hudson Valley188 East Post Road, Suite #404White Plains, NY 10601Phone: 914-358-9840Capital Region/North Country744 BroadwayAlbany, NY 12207Phone: 518-772-1862Central New York/Finger Lakes466 Westcott Street, 2nd FloorSyracuse, NY 13210Phone: 315-472-1339www.citizenscampaign.orgCCE would like to thankThe Moore Charitable Foundation for theirgenerous support.Funding provided by the NYS PollutionPrevention Institute through a grant from theNYS Department of Environmental Conservation.Any opinions, findings, conclusions orrecommendations expressed are those of theauthor(s) and do not necessarily reflect the viewsof the Department of EnvironmentalConservation.Western New York/Southern Tier733 Delaware Road, Box 140Buffalo, NY 14223Phone: 716-831-3206Connecticut2404 Whitney Avenue, 2nd FloorHamden, CT 06518Phone: 203-821-7050