Islip, NY - January 16th, 2015 - The Islip Town Board yesterday received notice from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation that the Town’s revised Material Removal Work Plan for Roberto Clemente Park has been approved. The Town resubmitted its plan on January 7th, working closely with the NYSDEC during its revision process in hopes for a quick turnaround and approval. The final plan incorporates the comments, perspectives, and opinions, made by the public and regulatory agencies during a required comment period in October.
“Throughout this process we have had an open dialogue with other governmental agencies, as well as members of the community,” said Islip Councilwoman Trish Bergin Weichbrodt. “Now that we have a clear path moving forward, we can begin the process of remediating Roberto Clemente Park.”
“We are dedicated to reopening this park to the community as soon as possible,” said Councilman Anthony Senft. “Approval of this remediation plan marks the opening step toward fixing the damage done to our Town as a result of this crime.”
The revised plan calls for the installation of a two additional groundwater testing wells, in addition to the three that have already been installed. Additional air monitoring, better defined soil sampling locations, and additional end-point sampling will help ensure that the community is protected and that all of the contaminated fill is removed entirely. The revised plan also calls for a more stringent selection process for determining which contractor will ultimately be hired through a public procurement process. Islip’s approved plan will welcome community participation through enhanced public dialogue and information sharing.
“There is still a lot of work to be done at Roberto Clemente Park, but with a plan firmly in place we can soon begin removing the contaminated material while safeguarding the public,” said Councilman John Cochrane, Jr.
“I’m looking forward to the day when we can call Roberto Clemente Park one of the premier parks in Islip Town,” said Councilman Steve Flotteron. “With the approval of this plan we can begin the work that will make that goal a reality.”
The next step in the remediation process is to advertise for a public bid to secure a contractor that will perform the actual removal of contaminated material. The remediation plan and the NYSDEC approval letter can be viewed on the Town of Islip website by clicking here.
