Counting the spills, state DEC database tracks toxic spills in region
Will Doolittle
Editor’s Note: This is the first in a series of stories on toxic spills, drawn from information in the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s Spill Incidents Database.
Toxins from bleach to battery acid, acetone to ammonia are flowing into the ground and water of local counties after being spilled in accidents on the road and at home and factories.
An array of harmful chemicals and petroleum products spill by the barrelful into the local environment every year.
The contamination, if it takes place outside, runs off hard surfaces like roadways and parking lots, seeps into the soil and flows into streams and lakes. In cities like Glens Falls, it washes into stormwater systems. Outside settled areas, it can get into groundwater and endanger drinking supplies.
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