Emilia Teasdale is reporting for The Columbia Paper the Environmental Protection Agency has completed its initial evaluation of the water bodies connected to the Dewey Loeffel Landfill Superfund site, following the July 14 severe weather event. Operations at the landfill caused PCBs to move to water bodies such as Little Thunder Brook and the Valatie Kill. During the storm, these waterbodies experienced high flows, erosion and flooding. After the storm, surface water samples and sediment samples downstream on residential properties where sediment was deposited during the flooding were collected for study. The sediment deposit sampling focused on residential areas along the Valatie Kill within the village of Nassau, as well as residential areas north of the village along the Valatie Kill and Nassau Lake. In Nassau, PCBs were either not found or were present at low concentrations. Based on the results, EPA does not plan any further sampling in these areas as part of its storm response. Follow-up sampling is happening in an area where PCBs were detected around the superfund site near Mead Road. The EPA found no significant impacts to the landfill site or to the site’s groundwater extraction and treatment system, which remained operational throughout the event. The Dewey Loeffel Landfill, near the village of Nassau, was a dumping ground for toxic waste for companies such as GE for many years in the 1950s and ’60s. Read the full story in The Columbia Paper.