Crowd shouts 'shame!' as New York town unveils plan for landfill's forever-chemical plume

Chants of "shame" broke out at a Brookhaven, New York, town board meeting when officials unveiled their preferred approach to an underground contamination plume associated with a landfill.

What happened?

Citizens Campaign for the Environment reported that town officials and representatives of the state Department of Environmental Conservation used the March 27 meeting to present five possible ways to address contamination linked to the 534-acre Brookhaven landfill.

Officials said much of the problem appears to stem from the landfill's oldest sections, cells one through three, which were built before current liner standards.

A 2024 investigation identified a southeast-moving "historic plume" beneath the ground that contains PFAS, chemicals widely known as "forever chemicals."

Instead of recommending an immediate shutdown or excavating all the buried waste, officials backed what they called the most practical course: continue monitoring conditions, connect more properties to municipal water, let the landfill continue operating until it reaches capacity around 2028, and cap it the following year.

Town officials maintained that closing the site immediately would not eliminate contamination already underground.

Residents who attended the meeting largely said that the response does not go nearly far enough.

Some people in attendance shouted, "Thanks for nothing," criticizing the plan for failing to include a direct cleanup of the contamination itself.

Why does it matter?

PFAS can remain in the environment for extremely long periods of time, which is why they are often called forever chemicals.

In Brookhaven, town leaders emphasized that many affected homes have already been connected to public water.

The landfill remains a major part of Long Island's trash infrastructure and generates millions in revenue. Nearby residents are living with the plume and pushing for stronger action.

What's being done?

For now, the town is advancing a plan focused on broader access to municipal water, continued groundwater monitoring, and the landfill's eventual closure and capping.

Officials said newer sections of the landfill use double-liner systems designed to prevent leakage, and they stressed that public drinking water is currently protected.

Residents and environmental advocates, however, are calling for more aggressive action. 

Adrienne Esposito of Citizens Campaign for the Environment criticized the town for failing to offer a cleanup option.

The March 27 meeting was described as a listening forum. Speakers were limited to three minutes, and written comments were accepted through April 7. That feedback was set to be included in a final report to the DEC due May 1.

TBR News Media also reported that Brookhaven is in a legal fight with the DEC over whether the agency can require cleanup of contamination, such as the landfill plume. That dispute could help determine what happens next.

"It's not an immediate closure, but it's a closure," said Christine Fetten.

Esposito offered a sharply different response, per TBR: "It was shocking and irresponsible that the town offered no option to clean up the plume."

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