Listen up, Sleepy Hollow residents. Thanks to a prospective home owner having the soil sampled at a residential property immediately south of Duracell’s former Sleepy Hollow site, a lead and mercury investigation has been triggered.
Duracell, which has since been acquired by Gillette, operated its Sleepy Hollow facility from 1945 to 1984, and produced mercuric oxide batteries until 1974—which was later found to have contaminated the soil in the nearby vicinity. A cleanup of the area and demolition of the factory ensued, and the site finally met state standards that existed at the time.
However, after the recent soil sampling in 2008, the state Department of Health and Department of Environmental Conservation conducted further tests of residential and Village-owned properties, and found that at least 36 properties carried potential contamination impacts.
Gillette as agreed to a consent order, which requires it to implement an investigation plan that will begin next spring—and based on the results, a cleanup plan will follow.
