Town of North Hempstead Supervisor Judi Bosworth said on Thursday that a toxic pesticide has been found in the 80-foot poles that are part of an electrical grid enhancement project in Great Neck, Manhasset and Port Washington.
“The residents of our town have the right to know that these poles contain a highly toxic pesticide known to cause health problems and classified by the EPA as a Class2B carcinogen,” Bosworth said in a letter dated May 15.
The pesticide is identified by Bosworth as pentachlorophenol (“penta”).
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s website says that “penta” is commonly used as a wood preservative and is not available to the general public.
The effects of coming into contact with “penta”, the EPA says, are “neurological, blood, and liver effects, and eye irritation” as well as harsh effects on a person’s “respiratory tract, blood, kidney, liver, immune system, eyes, nose and skin.”
Town spokeswoman Carole Trottere said the town became aware of the pesticide after it was brought up by residents at several town council meetings.
“Somebody brought it up so we started looking into it,” Trottere said.
Trottere said Bosworth has asked state Assemblywoman Michelle Schimel (D-Great Neck) and state Sen. Jack Martins (R-Mineola) to reach out to the state Department of Environmental Conservation regarding the presence of “penta” in the poles.
In a letter to Joseph Martens, commissioner of the DEC, Schimel said she wants the department to “investigate the possible environmental and health issues relating to the use of “penta” or any other chemical that may be found in the surrounding soil resulting from the pole installation.”
Bosworth said the utility has refused to set up signs warning people to wash their hands if they come into contact with the poles.
“Your director of external affairs has informed us that PSEG-Long Island refuses to take this simple, common-sense step to inform the public,” she said.
PSEG Long Island spokesman Jeffrey Weir defended the use of “penta” in the poles, saying its use has been cleared by the federal government.
“The wood preservatives used to treat poles are registered by the EPA under the federal pesticide statute, the Federal Insecticide Fungicide and Rodenticide Act,” Weir said.
The utility’s project, which began in late January, consists of the installation of transmission lines along 80-foot poles starting from Great Neck, running through Bayview Avenue in Manhasset, and ending in Port Washington. A mile of underground wires to be installed in Peninsula Park in the Village of Thomaston was approved by the Great Neck Park District last week.
PSEG officials have said the project is intended to enhance the electrical grid of the Town of North Hempstead, which had come under intense criticism following Superstorm Sandy when many portions of the town lost power for more than two weeks.
Weir said with the park district’s approval the utility company expects to finish the project before June 1.
A day before Bosworth’s letter was released, the state Public Service Commission said their review of the project showed PSEG Long Island’s plan was necessary for the utility company to provide power during summer months.
“To ensure reliability when power usage is highest, the project should be completed prior to the 2014 summer load period,” said Michael Worden, electrical deputy director of the state Public Service Commission.
Worden said the height of the poles will help to strengthen the resiliency of the town’s electrical grid.
“The new poles are designed to withstand a Category III hurricane and provide ‘hardening’ of the system which adds another component of increased system reliability,” Worden said.
Weir said the utility was pleased with the state agency’s conclusion.
“We appreciate the department’s quick response in their review,” he said.
Bosworth in March had asked Audrey Zibelman CEO of the state Public Service Commission, to start the review of the utility’s project to determine if there were any merits to halt the project.
“While we understand that it is their assessment that the PSEG-LI Reliability Project is necessary in order to provide dependable electric service to the affected community, we still have several question and concerns,” Bosworth said in an e-mail.
Worden said in his letter that in response to requests from town officials and residents, the department will continue to look into the feasibility of burying the wires. That study, Worden said, will be completed by mid-May.
The installation of the 80-foot poles and what has been called a lack of transparency has been blasted by town officials and residents.
Bosworth in a May 2 letter to the editor sent to Blank Slate Media said the utility company did not tell the town how tall utility poles would be when applying for permits to work on town roads.
“There was no indication the poles would be replaced with 80-foot poles,” Bosworth said.
Bosworth said 23 of the 220 poles needed to complete the project are on town roads. The others, she said, are on county and state roads.
The New Jersey-based utility took control of Long Island’s electrical grid operations on Jan. 1 after LIPA and National Grid were blasted for their response to Superstorm Sandy and their failure to properly maintain the electrical grid.
The town board at an April 1 meeting unanimously approved the hiring of its own independent consultant to look into the feasibility of burying the wires.
A petition with more than 1,400 signatures from North Hempstead residents, started by Port Washington resident Christine Hogan, blasts the project, calling the poles “aesthetically unpleasing” and saying that residents were not notified of the project’s details.
PSEG Long Island President David Daly was blasted by residents and town officials for a lack of transparency at a town-sponsored forum March 25.
“PSEG Long Island have fallen short of the common standard of informing the community,” Bosworth said at the forum. “The transparency just hasn’t been there and our community feels compromised as a result.”
Daly said that the company started the project in response to an energy forecast study done by the utility company which found that “in 2014, there wasn’t going to be enough wire in the air” to supply the town with an adequate supply of energy during the summer months.
