THE WPCNR POLL. June 29, 2006: WPCNR reporting has revealed that the city dump off the Greenway between Gedney Way and Ridgeway Avenues has been contaminated with TCEs for the last 35 years. The level of contamination has concerned the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to the extent that it is discussing with the City of White Plains Department of Public Works the conduct and scope of testing procedures on the dump over the next six months.

A Clean Dump or Dirty Dump? Clean it Up or Keep It the Way it Is? If you were the Mayor, who inherited the dump contamination, what would you do? Photo by Carl Albanese

The DEC is also asking the city to close its composting operation. Currently the city is proposing measures to bring more technology to its composting operation in order for it to be allowed to remain open.

The levels of contamination of TCE -- the identified contaminating presence in the groundwater -- have not been revealed by either the city Department of Public Works or the DEC.

Irregardless of the levels of contaminant, does Mr. and Mrs. and Ms. White Plains want the city to remediate the pollution and cleanup the dump? Or should the city let it go, if the DEC concurs they do not have to clean it up?

Or should the city spend a potential sum of about $ 4 Million necessary to cleanse the ground contamination as a matter of policy, reclaiming the dump.