By Nick Buglione
Higher levels of tetrachloroethylene, a hazardous chemical commonly used in the dry-cleaning process, were found in preliminary results of the investigation into the breadth and depth of the contamination.
Just east of East Meadow Avenue on Hempstead Turnpike, the shopping center, home to a number of stores, is one of the busiest in the neighborhood.
"It does appear we have found some heavy contamination closer to the building itself," said Bill Fonda, DEC spokesman.
There are a number of health risks associated with tetrachloroethylene, the extent of which are determined by the level and length of exposure, according to the state Department of Health. It has been known to cause damage to the central nervous system, kidney and liver, as well as cancer.
Fonda stressed, though, that the results were preliminary and that more testing had to be done. "There's no exact timetable for when the remedial investigation report will be produced," he said. Once the remedial report, which will detail the extent of the contamination, is released, a feasibility study will explore possible courses of action.
Impact Environmental, the company hired to investigate and clean up the chemical plume emanating from Melody Cleaners, is already testing a "soil vapor extraction system" that can possibly be used to rid the earth of contaminants, Fonda said.
"What that does is, it puts air into the contaminated soil and as the air moves through the soil it goes into extraction wells," he explained. "Then there's a carbon filtration system, and they run the contaminated air through this carbon and it's returned into the atmosphere."
Fonda went on to note that Impact Environmental is simply testing the system to determine whether it can effectively clean up the plume. "Some other techniques might have to be employed," he said.
An October 1999 environmental assessment of Melody Cleaners, at 2050 Hempstead Turnpike, first revealed that it had contaminated the soil and groundwater with tetrachloroethylene and its breakdown product, trichloroethylene.
It was determined in March 2000 that the chemicals had leaked into the soil through the cleaners' on-site cesspools before the store's connection to the municipal sewer system in 1982.
About 500 tons of tainted soil from three of the site's cesspools was removed in 2000, cutting off the source of contamination. Melody Cleaners remains open, but only as a drop-off site for clothes that are laundered elsewhere.
Trace levels of the chemicals were found in nearby Town of Hempstead water wells, though far below the threshhold that would require water treatment. Town officials continue to closely monitor the water supply.
State health and environmental conservation officials have tried to underscore that the chemical plume poses no immediate health risk to residents. At a meeting last fall, they assured the community that the air is safe to breathe and the water is safe to drink.
At that meeting, officials said that the plume was moving south from the site and had gotten as far as Lincoln Avenue, near McVey Elementary School.
Since tetrachloroethylene often seeps from the ground into the air, the state Department of Health has been conducting air-quality tests of nearby homes and businesses. The tests revealed that two private homes, the Dunkin' Donuts near Melody Cleaners and a vacant TV repair shop were found to have levels of tetrachloroethylene in the air that were above department guidelines.
Air purifying systems have since been installed in the Dunkin' Donuts and the two homes, though one homeowner says his system hasn't been working as well as health officials hoped. Ron Lupski, who lives on Front Street just south of the dry-cleaner, said the latest test revealed that there were 136 micrograms per cubic meter of the chemical in his home's air, up from 75 when the last test was taken.
"It's disconcerting, because they keep telling me they want it below 10," Lupski said. "They told me last year that by this spring it would all be cleaned up."
Citing a privacy policy, the Department of Health has declined to discuss the tests done in Lupski's home. According to a department fact sheet on tetrachloroethylene, the amount of chemicals lingering in Lupski's home is still far too low to pose any health threat. Lupski, however, has been skeptical of that point.
"There's nothing you can do except sit back and wait," he said. "It's getting me very aggravated."
