Oil Contamination Cleanup Underway at Former Westover NYSEG Plant

Workers have started the task of cleaning up petroleum contamination at an old NYSEG generating facility near Johnson City.

Cleanup activity at what had been known as Goudey Station off Riverside Drive in Westover began two weeks ago.

State Department of Environmental Conservation police officers and spill responders were sent to the site in February because of unauthorized activity. The town of Union issued a stop-work order and the state Department of Labor directed operations be halted.

Workers wearing hazmat suits inspected the site last month. They discovered heavily-contaminated soil and petroleum-contaminated water.

The petroleum cleanup work is expected to take three to four months to complete.

Some excavation will be needed to remove contaminated soil near two old oil tanks.

Workers on the site are digging test pits and sampling groundwater to determine the extent of petroleum contamination.

The basement of the Goudey Station building contains oil storage tanks and several feet of water contaminated with oil. The contractors will be working to remove and dispose of the oil.

There's no estimate available on the cost of the planned cleanup work.

AES Westover acquired the Town of Union plant from NYSEG in 1999. Property records show the site now is owned by NRGY Development LLC of Tampa, Florida. The property was sold last July for $400,000 by Westover Ventures LLC.

WATCH: Video as workers arrive at Goudey Station site on May 15, 2023.

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com or (607) 545-2250. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.