ROCHESTER, NY--Some of the country's largest corporations are required to reimburse the state of New York a total of nearly $1.6 million for cleanup costs at the Rochester Fire Academy, a hazardous waste site in Monroe County once used to train firefighters.
Attorney General Andrew Cuomo Wednesday announced a settlement with eight entities, including Bausch & Lomb, DuPont, Eastman Kodak, and Xerox, which all disposed of hazardous waste at the site from 1954 to 1980.
The 18-acre Rochester Fire Academy site was opened on Scottsville Road in Rochester in 1954 to train firefighters to combat a range of hazards.
During its operation, private and public entities in the area sent waste solvents, petroleum products, and other flammable substances to the site for use in training exercises.
In 1980 and 1981, sampling conducted at the request of the Department of Environmental Conservation found high levels of toxic chemicals, including lead and cancer-causing polychlorinated biphenyls, PCBs, contaminating soil and groundwater at the site.
The DEC determined that the site posed a significant threat to public health and the environment and required cleanup, so the Fire Academy was listed as a hazardous waste site under New York state's Superfund program.
On November 15, 2005, the Attorney General's Office sued eight private and public entities who sent waste to the site – Bausch & Lomb, E.I. du Pont de Nemours, Eastman Kodak Company, Xerox Corporation, Chloride Power Electronics, Rochester Gas & Electric, the University of Rochester, and Monroe County.
The settlement announced by the attorney general ends that lawsuit and requires the eight entities to collectively reimburse New York State $1,575,000.
Money collected in the settlement will be deposited in the State Superfund, where it will be used to help fund cleanups at other contaminated sites. Under DEC oversight, the city of Rochester continues to monitor the Rochester Fire Academy site for signs of pollution.
Environmental News Wire
www.ens-newswire.com
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