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Elevated Levels Of Radium Found At Bethpage High School

Bethpage Union Free High School
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Creative Commons
Bethpage High School in Bethpage, New York.

Routine tests of the groundwater beneath Bethpage High School on Long Island have revealed high levels of the carcinogen radium. It’s been found in several toxic plumes linked to contamination from the former Northrop Grumman aerospace plant.

Martin Brand, deputy commissioner for Remediation and Materials Management at the New York Department of Environmental Conservation, says the water is not connected to the school.  

“DEC has identified no immediate health concerns for students, staffs or visitors to the Bethpage High School.”

The school lies across the street from Bethpage Community Park, the site of a major cleanup effort to remove a toxic plume. 

The DEC will monitor and test groundwater and soil samples for radium and other chemicals.

This story was updated to reflect that the water in question is not connected to the school.

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