Suffolk County Water Authority breaks ground on water main extension

The Suffolk County Water Authority began work Monday on a major water main extension to bring public water to 64 homes in the Riverhead Town sections of Manorville and Calverton, taking them off private wells that have been shown to be contaminated by perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. 

This project is Phase 2 of an ongoing effort to connect more homes to SCWA water, officials said. 

Phase 1, which was completed in February, marked the culmination of a years-long effort by residents, elected officials and SCWA to expand public water to this area. That previous effort created SWCA connections for another 64 homes, all of them located in Brookhaven Town.

Much of Riverhead Town is already served by public water, but the Phase 2 areas are not, and these residents have pleaded with officials for years to bring public water to their homes. 

The new water main extension project will see the installation of more than 20,000 feet of water mains that will ultimately provide potable water that meets or surpasses water quality regulations.

“This is a victory for the community,” said Kelly McClinchy of Manorville, who led the fight for access to clean water.

Riverhead Supervisor Tim Hubbard said the current work will install all water mains needed to reach these areas, but that the town will need some additional funding in order to complete Phase 2 by connecting the homes to those mains. 

Adrienne Esposito, executive director of the Citizens Campaign for the Environment, which advocated for the homeowners, said in a release that “after a five-year fight, CCE, community members and elected officials are celebrating connecting all 128 homes to the public water.”

Officials said residents of the 128 affected homes had been drinking from private wells, some with confirmed toxic levels of PFAS and others with a high probability of contamination, perhaps linked to the toxic plume from former Naval base at Grumman. Testing of these residents’ wells has found PFAS “forever chemicals” and volatile organic compounds, which put their health at risk.