Soil and water samples taken from around the Norlite incineration facility in Cohoes found no indication that its prior burning of firefighting foam poses negative health risks to residents of the city or surrounding communities, the state Department of Environmental Conservation announced in a study released Tuesday.

The DEC conducted the tests in response to community concerns and to determine if toxic PFAS chemicals, mercury, and other metals were present due to operations performed at Norlite.

It was revealed last year that Norlite had been burning firefighting foam for the federal government in its incinerator. New York has since banned the use of the foam as a firefighting suppressant due to the presence of harmful PFAS chemicals.

The latest testing found no discernible pattern of aerial deposits that could be traced to the facility, and concentrations of PFAS found in the nearby soil do not indicate a human health risk, the DEC determined.

The testing included soil from the Saratoga Sites public housing complex, which is located next to the Norlite plant. Previous testing of the Cohoes and Green Island drinking water supplies revealed no contamination, according to the DEC. The latest sampling confirmed there have been no impacts to area drinking water.

Cohoes Mayor Bill Keeler released a statement Tuesday in response to DEC's findings.

"There is a lot to digest in the DEC’s 450-page Norlite Environmental Sampling Report," Keeler said. "It is an important step in the long-term process of getting the community the answers they deserve about the potential health and environmental impacts of hazardous waste incineration at Norlite."

DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos says that while the study should give residents peace of mind, "DEC will continue to hold this facility accountable for the impact of its operations on the surrounding area while we engage local residents in our decision-making every step of the way."

The full DEC study and corresponding data are available at DEC's website.

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