The McKiernans have received DEC testing results from their 99th Street backyard, and the findings have prompted the family to look for a new place to live.
Results show their 99th Street property has dangerous levels of lead, copper, nickel, and hexavalent chromium, with other metals like aluminum and antimony possibly present. For lead alone, testing found 9,700 milligrams per kilogram of soil, many times above the Environmental Protection Agency’s accepted safe lead level of 200 mg/kg for soil.
“None of this was disclosed to my husband when he bought the house,” said Jocelyn McKiernan, who has lived near the infamous Love Canal site with three children since 2021 and her husband Dan a year before. “He actually dug up our disclosure agreement, and it says NA to everything that was here.”
According to the testing results reviewed by the McKiernans, chemicals including DDE, DDT, chlordane, endosulfan, phenanthrene and 4,4 DDD were also identified. All of those materials can release vapors that seep into the home, potentially posing health risks.
The McKiernans said DEC officials told them they would not share the results with their neighbors because they do not know for sure all the contaminants they’re dealing with and where they came from.
McKiernan herself suffered five miscarriages in her time in the home since they installed a sump pump in their basement. Their oldest son, they said, who is special needs, started having seizures shortly after that, with swelling in his brain. The other children have also suffered from unexplained rashes and ear infections.
Fluorescent hydrocarbons were found coming through their sump pump, which glow when put under a UV light, as well as black sludge.
A few of McKiernan’s neighbors have also smelled similar vapors in their homes and had fluorescent hydrocarbons in their basements. Two neighbors’ dogs also experienced seizures and one neighbor’s dog did die, they said.
“We have found one or two rods in the past that really never caught our attention before,” Dan said.
The McKiernan’s first called the DEC about the issue in mid-July, when they uncovered rods and other underground debris during excavation work for their pool. A representative from the DEC spill response team was the first to visit the property, with tests on dirt piles found to be under “safe” limits.
DEC staff members visited the property last week to perform further testing, remove the largest pile of dirt there, cover part of the yard in vinyl wrapping and place sand, topsoil and gardening fabric in the area surrounding the pool.
The couple has been looking with Christen Civiletto, the local environmental attorney who has also advised Town of Niagara homeowners found to have unsafe radiation readings on their properties.
“We have a whole range of Love Canal organics, and they’re also showing up inside their house,” Civiletto said, noting that the chemicals found have not been manufactured since the 1970s.
As part of further work on the property, the DEC proposed geoprobe testing, land surveys, groundwater testing, indoor air quality testing, and other excavation work since more rods were discovered underneath the back deck, according to the McKiernans.
Dan said they are working on finding a place to relocate to, which has not been easy since they need a place that can accommodate their special needs son.
“I don’t want to be here ever again,” Dan said, adding they would do whatever it takes to get somewhere safe for their children to start healing.
Over the past three weeks, the McKiernans have also sent letters to Gov. Kathy Hochul, state Sen. Rob Ortt, the EPA, and other officials urging them for more help. They have not received any responses.