The Great Neck North Water Authority filed a May 16 notice of appeal after a judge dismissed its lawsuit brought against Northwell Health for allegations of contaminating the groundwater.
The water authority claimed in a February 2024 lawsuit that Northwell Health’s New Hyde Park facility at 400 Lakeville Road contaminated the groundwater with the chemical Freon-22. The authority said the chemical came from its air conditioners.
“The release of Freon-22 from the LIJMC Site caused Freon-22 to migrate via groundwater and enter public drinking water supply wells within the Authority’s system, resulting in a substantial interference with the public’s right to clean drinking water,” the water authority wrote in its suit.
Northwell defended its action by arguing that Freon-22 is not defined as an emerging contaminant in the state statute regulating drinking water sources and pollutants.
Freon-22 is a synthetic chemical commonly found in refrigerant which the water authority described as “a highly toxic substance” in its lawsuit.
The Great Neck North Water Authority alleged that the hospital had been aware of the issue since at least 2004, two decades before the lawsuit was filed, and that they did not adequately address the situation.
The water authority said they addressed the problem by establishing wellhead treatment.
The suit sought monetary relief to reimburse the water authority’s cost to remove the Freon-22 from the water supply. The water authority argued that the cost burden should fall on the hospital, not on the authority nor its rate payers.
The suit was dismissed by Nassau State Supreme Court Justice Danielle M. Peterson in April as she said it was “barred by the applicable statute of limitations.”
Although the state enacted legislation in 2022 that allows water municipalities to sue individuals for polluting emerging contaminants beyond the statute of limitations, Peterson decided this did not apply to this lawsuit as Freon-22 is not defined as an emerging contaminant.
