Recently, Brookhaven National Laboratory announced to elected representatives in Nassau, Suffolk, Queens and the Bronx that it will soon begin to ship 4,000 cubic feet of radioactive soil on railway cars to a disposal site out of New York State. The soil, which was excavated from a former waste disposal area at the Upton facility in Suffolk County, has been contaminated with cesium as a result of previous operations at the lab. It will be loaded onto several rail cars which will carry it to a containment facility in Utah. Freight trains on Long Island are operated by New York and Atlantic Railways on tracks owned by the Long Island Railroad.
It is important to note that the proposed Long Island Truck – Rail Inter Modal Facility (LITRIM) in Suffolk County and the LIRR Mainline Corridor Improvement Project are two of several railway expansion proposals in our region which can enable significantly more freight railway traffic to pass along the mainline corridor. Increased freight rail traffic can have a direct and negative impact on the quality of life of those citizens who reside in such “mainline” communities as Bellerose, Floral Park, New Hyde Park, Garden City Park, Garden City, Carle Place, Mineola, Westbury and Hicksville.
As SOV New Hyde Park continues to explore this development, we strongly encourage residents to share their concerns with those who have direct influence on matters which can potentially affect the health, safety and general welfare of our neighborhood – contact your local, state and federal representatives and let your voice be heard!
