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Know the Issues about PFAS in Rockland’s Drinking Water

I fill two glasses of tap water for our supper.  It looks pristine.  It tastes okay.  I pour it into a kettle for tea or coffee several times a day. I fill a bottle with it when we’re traveling.  I use it for cooking, and in humidifiers.  I hear stories on the news at night about communities worldwide where no running water is available, and I count my blessings.  As I should. 

And yet … as a member of the Rockland Sierra Club, I begin to receive emails about PFAS, including their presence in the water we in Upper Nyack receive from the Suez Water Company.  I read that New York State has established new standards for the amount of PFAS allowed in water in New York State.  I receive a letter from Suez telling me that they have not achieved these standards, but are working on the problem.  I am assured by them that the level of PFAS in my water is safe, not a threat to my health.   I receive an email from the Rockland Sierra Club telling me it’s not clear that ANY level of PFAS is safe. 

What are PFAS anyway?  According to Riverkeeper, PFAS refers to “per-and poly-fluoroalkyl substances.  This is a class of chemicals that includes thousands of individual chemicals”, including PFOA  (Perfluorooctanoic acid acid) and PFOS (Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid).( https://www.riverkeeper.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Public-Report-2019-Rockland-PFAS-data-Analysis-and-Observations.pdf)  PFAS are called “forever chemicals,” because their chemistry “keeps them from breaking down under typical environmental conditions.  They can persist indefinitely in the human body, affecting one’s health over a lifetime.”   

(https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/forever-chemicals-are-widespread-in-u-s-drinking-water/)

PFAS became known to the public in 1999 when a high profile case against the Dupont Chemical Company was filed by Robert Bilott, a lawyer representing a farmer in Parkersburg, West Virginia, whose cattle had been dying from PFOS flowing from the company’s landfill into nearby streams.  Birth defects and a variety of cancers plagued the people of Parkersburg. Bilott’s ongoing lawsuits resulted in a 2017 settlement with Dupont for $671 million.

In New York State the communities of Newburgh and Hoosick Falls were discovered in 2015 and 2016 to have dangerous levels of PFAS in their water. The contamination was linked to specific polluters near their communities, which were held accountable by the New York State Department of Conservation. In Rockland County there is not the same cause for alarm.  But complacency in response to any level of PFAS is a risk.  Most of us carry it in our bodies. 

PFAS are found in a variety of products we use or are exposed to, including Teflon cookware, firefighting foam, water repellent fabric, paints and varnishes, food packaging, boots, and beauty products. Any ingredient beginning with “fluoro,” or including it in a longer name, contains PFAS chemicals.  According to the American Chemical Society, they are “persistent, cumulative, mobile and hazardous.” In addition, “adverse effects of PFAS can occur in several bodily systems, with the developing immune system being particularly sensitive.” They are linked to a number of cancers, including testicular, thyroid and colon.  Exposure to the chemicals can occur throughout their life cycles.  (https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.estlett.0c00255k)  

In August 2019 New York State adopted new drinking water standards setting maximum contaminant levels (MCL’s) of 10 parts per trillion (10 ppt) each for PFOA and PFOS (20 ppt total for these 2).   New York State also requires a maximum level of one part per billion (1ppb) for 1.4 doxane, the first state to monitor this contaminant.  Water systems are given the responsibility of reporting exceedances to their local health department.   Although the New York Department of Health states that MCL’s in drinking water “are set far below levels that cause health effects,” the Environmental Working Group, a non-profit, non-partisan organization, states that “government scientists in New Jersey and Germany indicate that a safe level in drinking water may be zero,” given that there is widespread exposure from other sources.  https://www.ewg.org/pfaschemicals/what-are-forever-chemicals.html

I return to Suez’s website and read, “Rockland’s drinking water continues to be acceptable for all uses.”  “Acceptable,” I note, not “safe.”  The company states that to fully install treatment will take less than three years. That seems like a big window of time.

To be fair, Suez water comes from a large variety of sources, including a number of wells. Riverkeeper says that its system may be “uniquely complex,” stating that there are 42 “on ramps” to the Suez supply, 40 of which are individual wells, pairs of wells or well fields.  PFAS treatment “will likely have have to be applied to multiple wells, rather than a single water treatment plant.”  In addition, the sources of PFAS are unclear, probably a number of polluters, not just one.  Although our levels of PFAS are not, as far as we know, alarming, Suez must be held accountable by the public to follow through quickly, thoroughly and transparently on its promise to meet NY standards.  It must be encouraged to strive for even higher standards, as must New York State.  Other states, including Michigan and Vermont, have established more stringent laws regulating PFAS.

According to Seth Siegel, the author of Troubled Water: What’s Wrong with What We Drink, St. Martin’s Press, 2019, in Europe “the burden is supposed to be on the chemical company to prove that the chemical is harmless before it can be reproduced.”  Siegel acknowledges that implementation and enforcement have not been consistent, but the approach is a welcome one, in contrast to the US policy of chemicals being “welcomed into commerce unless and until they are proven harmful.”

I feel overwhelmed by the amount of information, and the impact of the award winning documentary, “The Devil we Know,” which tells the story of Dupont’s introducing Teflon into thousands of products worldwide, while dumping its toxic waste into the river near its Parkersburg, West Virginia plant.  This water was responsible for multiple cancers, the agonizing deaths of a herd of cattle, and facial deformities in infants. Internal memos at Dupont document the company’s fears of financial loss if the truth about the toxicity of their landfills was revealed, and its attempts to conceal the danger to the community.

What can I do about my own community’s water safety?   The Rockland Sierra Club and the Rockland Water Coalition were sponsors of two informative meetings, on January 7 and February 8 of this year.  At the second meeting, focused on action, Eric Weltman, a Senior Organizer at Food and Water Watch in New York City, forcefully advocated for lobbying Governor Andrew Cuomo.  “He can be a hero,” stated Weltman, noting that  New York can be a leader in setting a goal of no detectable levels of PFAS in drinking water in any of our communities.  Ultimately, says Weltman, the governor is responsible for the work of state agencies, such as the Department of Health (DEH) and the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC).   The Rockland Water Coalition urges each of us to call Governor Cuomo, asking him to assure that PFAS chemicals are removed from state water supply systems as quickly and completely as possible.  Sign the Coalition’s petition: http://www.rocklandwatercoalition.org/know-the-issues/what-we-support/

Follow up with a letter or email with “specific asks” spelled out by Weltman:

1) Require testing and treatment of all wells.

2) Be as transparent and specific as he was during the early Covid crisis, and provide information online.

3) Offer free testing by the DEH for all local wells, including those on private property.

4) Hold polluters accountable for payment of clean-up.

5) Provide up-to-date information to health care providers, and assure free blood tests to residents through the DEH. 

6) Assure that public meetings are held.

7) Regulate ALL PFAS, and regulate them as a class.

The last request is essential, as PFAS now number in the thousands, and new ones have been created by industries by chemical tweak as regulations on old ones have been put in place. 

Advocacy by citizens works.  I remind myself that although I’m only one voice, my voice can be heard.  I wouldn’t think of not voting in a state or federal election.  My obligation to be heard on the issue of safe water for myself, my children, my grandchildren, my fellow citizens can begin in Rockland County, and in New York State.

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Composting is Easy!

By Suzanne Buchauer

Spending more time in the garden has certainly allowed for more contemplation of how to best use the resources available to us, save the precious natural resources we are blessed with, and help to reduce large percentages of waste in our landfills. Composting ticks all the boxes of personal gain and community service—and it is very low cost, and helps save money for the greater good.

Our Composting Journey In Rockland County

When my family moved to Upper Nyack 5 years ago, 1 of the first things we noticed was a composting bin over the fence in our neighbor’s yard. She told us that she had gotten her recycled plastic composting bin through the Cornell Cooperative Extension. It made sense for us to try this method. The bin seemed contained, keeping critters out. It had air holes, a little door to harvest compost from below. And it’s lightweight.

So, we went and picked up a bin at the Rockland County Solid Waste Authority, which had the bins at the time. It was very easy to get and bring home and start using right away. And it is not costly. We placed it behind a juniper tree and started putting our raw food scraps in. At the end of the year, we moved the bin and threw some leaves and dirt on the remaining pile. It had decomposed, but slowly, and we noticed that certain items took much longer than others. We had not done any research and did not have prior composting experience. It took a few years before we figured out that adding so called “brown” material, such as leaves, ripped up paper egg cartons, shredded paper, or napkins, increased the process. Then, we figured out that smashing up the leaves and cutting up the veggie and fruit scraps that are larger or harder, like broccoli stems and watermelon or squash, helps even more.

A couple weeks ago, we heard a very informative and helpful Zoom presentation, sponsored by the Green Committee of Upper Nyack and given by Kristen Nora Ossman from the Cornell Cooperative Extension, and we learned even more–better late than never! Here are some of the things we learned:

If It’s Wet and Smelly, Add More Brown; If It’s Dry, Sprinkle Water

That was all we needed. Amazingly, we notice that the composting process goes SO MUCH quicker, does not smell, and it works. Composting was and now still is a process; it is gratifying and enriching to know we are doing our part for the larger good and to help our garden. Honestly, even if you just compost, move the bin each year and let it just go back into the earth right there, it is still helping to reduce waste in our landfill… by a very large amount!

Save Leaves For the Year

This year, now that the leaves are about to fall, we have planned on collecting and mulching them a bit—which is easy to do with your lawnmower. In our case, we actually got a leaf mulcher, due to the extremely large amount of leaves we have in our back area. I am excited that we will have mulched browns to put in our compost bin after every bucket of food scraps that we place in there.

What is your composting journey? Where are you in the process? Please know that there is information right here in Rockland County available to you (or on the wondrous interweb).

For more information on composting and the easy recycled plastic composting bins, see the website at the Cornell Cooperative Extension. I just heard that the bins are back in stock! Contact Jennifer Strianese, Administrative Assistant, Cornell University, Cooperative Extension Rockland County at 845-429-7085 x 117 or by emailing jas946@cornell.edu

Suzanne Buchauer is a member of the Green Committee of Upper Nyack. She is a Licensed Davis Dyslexia Correction Facilitator. Visit www.dyslexia-works.com.

This article was originally published in Nyack News And Views Earth Matters, September 23, 2020.

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In Praise of Green

I write in praise of green – and of yellow, pink, white, purple, magenta, red – of all the glorious colors of spring unfolding in this strange April of 2020. We in the northern hemisphere have the great good luck of sheltering in place just as spring bathes us in color, sound, and fragrance.


Our yards and neighborhoods soothe us, invite us to exercise, call children to play. People of all ages are tiring of screens. Children are playing on swing sets, throwing balls, racing to capture the flag. Parents are urging children to go outside, find something to do, play with their brothers and sisters as children did before play dates and structured athletics filled their days. I like to think that imaginations are flourishing in new ways.


Time slows as it stretches out before us. Senses are sharpened. I see things I haven’t before.Sitting in a lawn chair, I gaze into our massive black cherry tree – can it be 100 years old? – its blossoms blazing against the blue sky. I watch its shadows, its soft movement of branches in a light wind, the brilliance of its white flowers. It feeds my hunger for something that isn’t virtual,something alive, moving within my reach. Each day I walk our garden, noticing another 1/4 inch of a green shoot, finally a bloom – first snowdrops, then crocuses, daffodils, now tulips. Peony shrubs are growing larger, hostas are emerging, the leaves of Japanese maples add russet red to the spring palate. The scent of our viburnum sweetens the air.

Why is animal life more compelling? A squirrel sits on a boulder munching contentedly on something he’s dug up from the earth. Suddenly he scampers up an oak tree, another squirrel in hot pursuit. A game? There’s plenty of food to go around. A blue jay and a robin battle for territory or a turn in the birdbath. I listen to birdsong, wishing my friend from Audubon were with me, to identify calls. Occasionally a turkey or two make an appearance. Coffee in hand, I stand at the window and watch for a long time, noticing birds in the trailing vinca, a fern unfurling, new red growth on the andromeda. A friend said to me once, at a period of deep grief in her life, “I have a visceral need for something alive.”

We’re grieving now – for lost loved ones, for new grandchildren we can’t hug or touch, for lost jobs,for life as we know it. For freedom to come and go, to travel from home, to walk or run in parks welove, to rip off our masks and gloves, to throw our arms around friends and family. Enough of Zoom, Skype, face time, virtual concerts and streaming films.


People who haven’t walked and hiked with enthusiasm are discovering their importance. Sadly,their urgency to be outdoors has outdistanced their caution and consideration for others, so parks have closed. It’s probable, though, that more people than ever are feeling the loss of woodland trails, of walks by a river or lake, of wide fields where children can run. We’re staying home, driving less, enjoying the quiet as gas blowers are silenced. We know that people are suffering from layoffs, landscapers are hurting, the price for giving up business as usual is too high. But maybe -just maybe – the benefits of cleaner air, the reassurance of spring returning, our hunger for life unfolding, our need for the earth – are becoming essential to more of us.


I’m reminded of a poem by Wendell Berry. I’ll end my reflections with his words. I hope you’ll listen to them too, read by the poet.

https://audioboom.com/posts/3556168-the-peace-of-wild-things-read-by-wendell-berry

The Peace of Wild Things

When despair for the world grows in me

and I wake in the night at the least sound

in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,

I go and lie down where the wood drake

rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.

I come into the peace of wild things

who do not tax their lives with forethought

of grief. I come into the presence of still water.

And I feel above me the day-blind stars

waiting with their light. For a time

I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

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The Sounds of Summer

by Judy Ryan and Suzanne Buchauer

Early in the morning, I awake to the sound of birdsong.  Soon I hear the thwack of a tennis ball on the nearby court, the chatter of children playing in the yard next door, a splash of water in the pool across the street.  I love these sounds.

By 9AM (or earlier) the mowing and blowing begins.  Sometimes just next door, sometimes in as many as six properties well within earshot of our own.  Most are gas powered, and I’ve seen two landscapers within feet of each other blowing in tandem across a lawn free from any detritus that I can see.  The sound is deafening (literally), especially for the landscapers – some, but not all of who wear ear protectors.  The noise rises and falls until sunset. 

How many of us know that …

  • eighty-five decibels of sound can damage your hearing?  Leaf blowers operate at 80-115 decibels, depending on distance from the blow.
  • winds of up to 250 miles per hour are produced by leaf blowers, which damage small and delicate plants and blow away your precious topsoil?
  • pollutants such as carbon monoxide, nitrous oxides, and hydrocarbons are emitted? In addition, oil particles, fertilizer, mold, pollen, and feces are kicked up in the dust of the blowers. In spring allergy sufferers are especially impacted. 
  • one hour of leaf blowing with a gas blower creates as much air pollution as driving from Nyack to Memphis?
  • acids, fine particulate matter, heavy metals, and carcinogens are emitted with the exhaust of two stroke gas blowers, since about 30 percent of the gas and oil do not burn completely?
  • gas spillage happens almost every time a blower is filled?  On average, four ounces are spilled, which means that in the US, approximately 17 million gallons of gas are spilled per year, contaminating ground water.

What can we do to raise awareness among our friends, family, neighbors and landscapers?

  • Talk to our family, friends and landscapers.  Information is key to making good choices. 

What can we do to help?

  • Sweep or rake leaves and clipping from beds and sidewalks.
  • Lower our standards for lawns. Mulch leaves instead of blowing them. Mulching lawnmowers are able to break them down right away.  Mulched leaves can be left on our lawns to decompose.  The plant matter breaks down and helps feed the lawn, resulting in less need for fertilizer.
  • Encourage our landscapers to limit their use of gas powered leaf blowers, and to consider a move to electric. Electric blowers are quieter and produce a small fraction of pollutants.  Blowing is rarely necessary in summer, and often just redistributes pollutants, wafting them through the atmosphere, and back into our noses and yards. 

Noise and air pollution have received increased attention from citizens, who are asking their towns and villages to consider ordinances to regulate them.  The Upper Nyack Green Committee is working on ways to lessen the sounds and smells of gas mowing and blowing in our village, while considering the needs and preferences of landscapers and homeowners alike.  Stay tuned for more.

So many happy summer sounds are drowned out by mowing and blowing. And how many of us remember the lovely sound of silence?

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Arbor Day in Upper Nyack

Arbor Day, April 27, was blustery and cool, dampening attendance but not the spirit of Upper Nyack’s Arbor Day celebration at the Old Stone Church.  Flowers and snacks of fruit, cheese and chocolate made an inviting centerpiece for Mayor Karen Tarapata’s table of books and flyers about trees, including a children’s book.  She provided an extensive list of online resources (see PDF).   She also set up a table for kids, with natural materials for art projects, and packets of wildflowers to take home.  A newly planted Kousa dogwood tree, provided by the village, graced the outdoor garden, where new shrubs had been planted by the Garden Club of Nyack. The village’s support of planting native tree species in our community was promoted by the distribution to residents of 15 saplings of dogwood, eastern red cedar and paper birch (in 1-gallon containers).  They were generously provided by resident Bill Schmidt. It is anticipated that additional saplings will be available in the fall.  The Tree Committee of the Green Committee offered additional handouts, including Tree Facts and a list of tree species suitable for our area (see PDF’s).  

Information about CCA (Community Choice Aggregation)  was available at a table supplied with fliers and other info regarding the proposal to bring low-cost renewable electricity to the village.  Mike Gordon, a representative from Joule Energy, a CCA administrator, was there to answer questions.  (https://www.joulecommunity.com). He and Jeff Domanski, whose company does outreach for Joule, engaged with a number of interested villagers.  A flyer provided by the Green Committee is available as a PDF.

The Green Committee also offered information about noise pollution, including a poster and handouts on the benefits of electric mowers and leaf blowers.  Specific data on the high rates of noise and air pollution created by gas landscaping machines was included as well.  Residents were reminded that our hearing and emotional well-being, as well as our lungs, are affected by the sound levels in our neighborhoods. (see attached PDF’s).  Other communities have put regulations in place.  (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lvKX7UIYWM&feature=youtu.be)

Following the event at the Old Stone Meeting House, Mayor Tarapata led a walk through the Cason property, christened River Hook Park. The village community has been clear in its preference for a passive park, and the mayor favors planting of native trees, shrubs, and flowering plants for pollinators.  She’s also considering a playground of wood stumps and simple structures.   The village was given 16 lilac bushes for the Preserve. The mayor is looking for volunteers Saturday, May 11 at 11 AM to help plant them on the property. Meet at the Broadway entrance.

Arbor Day reminds us that trees are providers of beauty, peace, and shade, and provide safe habitats for the natural creatures around us. They capture carbon dioxide, and are crucial to the survival of our planet. If every day were arbor day, the world would be a greener, cooler, and healthier home for us all.

The Green Committee is an advisory and advocacy group made up of Upper Nyack residents working toward the environmental health and resiliency of our village in the face of climate change.  Issues of concern include air and noise pollution; tree planting designed to survive extreme weather; water conservation, sewers and drainage; green landscaping; more use of renewable energy sources; and education of the public in these areas and others of concern to residents. For more information, please contact Judy Ryan at jlryan4181@aol.com or 845 358-4322.