The Department of Environmental Conservation has ordered the Town of Brookhaven to take action to reduce odors at the landfill in Yaphank.

Residents in the community surrounding the Brookhaven Landfill have been asking for change for years.

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The Department of Environmental Conservation has ordered the Town of Brookhaven to take action to reduce odors at the landfill in Yaphank. 

Residents in the community surrounding the Brookhaven Landfill have been asking for change for years. 

More than 1,000 residents have signed petitions asking the governor to step in and order the town to do something about the foul fumes. 

Adrienne Esposito from the Citizens Campaign for the Environment says the fumes aren't just an odor problem. 

"It's really critical because, the odors are not just a nuisance. The hydrogen sulfide brings with it toxic chemicals such as benzene, bacteria, and things that actually make people sick," Esposito says. 

She says corrective action from the town is crucial to improving the public health of the community, the school children and the teachers of the area. 

In a statement, the town of Brookhaven said, "Yesterday the NYS DEC issued a release detailing the numerous actions Brookhaven has taken over the past two years to cap and close the landfill and reduce odors in the community.  We want to thank the DEC for recognizing our efforts and detailing that the odors resulting from the landfill closure were unpleasant but did not impact the health of our residents." 

The statement continued, "In December of 2018, Brookhaven notified the DEC, community residents and the press that work on the landfill capping that month would require cutting into historic fill, creating a temporary odor event.  The DEC agreed with Brookhaven at this time that such work was needed to provide long-term odor control. As expected, work during this period resulted in odor complaints from residents living near the landfill from elevated levels of hydrogen sulfide – which causes a distinctive rotten egg smell." 

The DEC is holding a public information session on Oct. 10 from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Medford Fire District on Oregon Avenue. 

Experts will be on hand to answer residents' questions about the measures to reduce odors at the Brookhaven Landfill in Yaphank.