Her office continues to receive criticism from Niagara County homeowners who say she’s mostly ignored their concerns; however, Gov. Hochul said in a press release late Monday that she’s “proud” of ongoing radiological survey work being done by state and federal agencies.
Following what her office described in its release as a briefing from an incident command center, Hochul described the entire radiological initiative as an “extraordinary operation,” the likes of which she’s never seen “built so fast with such professionals from all over the country.”
“I want people to believe in their government at the federal level and the local level because of what you’re doing — and I believe they are,” Hochul said in the release that her office issued at 7:22 p.m. Monday.
Hochul has faced at times heavy criticism from members of Save Our Backyards Niagara, a grassroots advocacy group formed by a group of Town of Niagara homeowners who were advised in May that their properties required additional radiological testing. Additional testing later revealed at least four homeowners living on Chester and Fox avenues off Witmer Road had high radioactivity levels on their properties.
Those four homeowners have since been cleared for relocation by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; however, neither agency has agreed to their request to declare their neighborhood a state Superfund site.
While she and DEC Commissioner Amanda Lefton called several affected homeowners personally earlier this year, both have been criticized by residents for failing to take a more proactive approach to their radioactivity concerns.
In her press release, Hochul thanked what she described as the “dream team” assembled to find answers, do the surveys and the work necessary to “make sure everybody who comes in communication with any one of us says that, ‘Yes, this is a new era, a new era where the federal government and state are working closely in partnership.”
According to the release, Hochul’s briefing at the incident command center in Niagara Falls involved officials from the state DEC and the federal EPA, including Director of State Operations Jackie Bray, DEC Commissioner Lefton and EPA Regional Administrator Michael Martucci. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and Hochul connected directly by phone while she was at the command center, according to the release.
Hochul said she told officials that she continues to expect them to lead with compassion and to cut through any bureaucratic hurdles to get homeowners the answers to the many questions they have posed. She also urged the teams, when communicating with the impacted families, to do so in a way that is both transparent and clear, the release indicated.
“You are the faces — when you show up on the property, or you communicate with them through letters, or you send an email or you’re just on the street — you’re the face of government to them,” Hochul said. “And that face of government can be extraordinarily positive, or it can be more bureaucratic. And I’m proud of what we’ve done. I want to make sure that we always lead with empathy.”
Lexi Hawk, one of the founders of Save Our Backyards Niagara, whose family has been cleared for relocation due to high levels of radiation found on her property, wondered why no residents were invited to attend the governor’s visit to the Falls. She also questioned why none of the members of her group were invited to see firsthand how state and federal officials are working together to tackle the radiological matters at hand.
“On my end of it, I’ve been receiving constant miscommunication and misinformation,” she said. “I hear from them, ‘I’m sorry you received misinformation’ more than I get an answer.”
Hawk said she’s glad people on the ground are working to address the problem and she appreciates any response she receives from the officials involved, including Hochul. She added that she hopes they continue to communicate and work together to clean all of Niagara so residents can “finally put an end to the decades of suffering.”
In her office’s press release, Hochul said she told Lefton that she should “lead with empathy” and reminded her that it is “terribly frightening” for families to learn their homes may no longer be safe. She also described Love Canal as being an “everyday occurrence” when she and her family talked about the news when she was younger. According to the release, Hochul has also asked for more frequent check-ins with families in Niagara County as the radiological survey work continues.
Daniel and Jocelyn McKiernan, who have been asking state officials to relocate their family for weeks amid concerns about industrial waste and chemicals found on their property and in their home, described Hochul’s release as a “we care statement” intended as “damage control” for the DEC.
“I’m kind of floored by this,” Jocelyn said. “This is not an extraordinary operation. This is a dereliction of duty and it’s disgusting. She had the nerve to come here a second time and not even grace our family with her presence. She can’t even give us five minutes on the phone. To say it was built fast and that she believes in what they are doing, it’s despicable.”
“The lack of trust is speaking loud and clear as we are uncovering a buried dump site in our backyard, 300 feet from Love Canal,” she added.
State and federal officials say, to date, more than 1,000 properties have been screened under the ongoing radiological survey, with the bulk of properties warranting no further action. While central and southern Erie County showed no major issues, 33 total properties, primarily in the Town of Niagara and Niagara Falls, were referred to the EPA for more sampling that will help identify the extent of radiation contamination and, if warranted, remediate the property. One referral was identified on Grand Island.
The property screening was preceded by flyovers and road surveys in 2023-2025 to identify potential locations of interest.
According to the governor’s office, soil samples taken at the properties are required to undergo a mandatory 21-day stabilization/curing period in laboratories before analysis, risk assessments, and quality control can occur, which officials said could take two to three months per site.