Toxic plume reaches Swan Pond, contaminates private wells near former Navy Grumman site
Environmental advocates say the contamination, tied to decades-old operations at the former naval facility, continues to threaten local waterways, including ponds, lakes and rivers in Calverton.
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Chemicals linked to the Navy’s former Grumman site have spread to Swan Pond and contaminated three private drinking water wells nearby, according to a new report by the Navy.
“The water’s polluted, there’s no two ways about it,” Manorville resident Ronald Martz said.
Environmental advocates say the contamination, tied to decades-old operations at the former naval facility, continues to threaten local waterways, including ponds, lakes and rivers in Calverton.
Adrienne Esposito, executive director of Citizens Campaign for the Environment, criticized the pace of cleanup efforts.
“The Navy needs to sink in wells, extraction wells, at the edge of that plume and filter out the contamination,” Esposito said.
Suffolk County is also pressing the Navy to accelerate remediation efforts. In a statement to News 12, the county said testing shows contamination levels exceed state and federal standards.
Peconic Lake is among the affected bodies of water where health officials have detected cancer-causing chemicals. Authorities recommend that any fish caught there be released and not consumed.
“People should not be eating those fish,” Esposito said.
Despite the warning, some residents remain unconcerned. Joseph Monaco, who recently caught fish in Peconic Lake, said he still plans to eat it.
“We eat them once or twice a year," Monaco said. "I’m not worried."
The Navy said it is continuing efforts to address contamination at the pond and nearby wells. Officials said cleanup work has included removing 112,000 tons of contaminated soil in Calverton and treating 184 million gallons of groundwater, eliminating nearly 53,000 pounds of chemicals over the years.
