GRAND ISLAND, N.Y. (WKBW) — The Grand Island Town Board is expected to consider a resolution Monday that would authorize Town Supervisor Peter Marston to sign property access for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), should the agencies request access to town-controlled or town-owned properties.
The item comes as the DEC and EPA test portions of Niagara and Erie counties following concerns about radioactive contamination in the region.
According to the resolution, the authorization would allow the supervisor to sign permissions needed for DEC and EPA to inspect town-owned or town-controlled properties the agencies identify as areas of concern.
Marston said the town has already been contacted regarding locations on Grand Island.
"They've reached out to the town and said that there are some areas of interest on Grand Island that they want to do further investigation on," Marston said. "One of them was relatively in close proximity to our town park, so they asked if they could get permission to test our park just to make sure everything is okay and everything is up and up."
Marston said bringing this before the Town Board now is intended to streamline any future requests for access.
"I also felt it appropriate to be proactive that we talk about all the town properties, and if they were to come back and say we'd like to go over here, so we don't have to go through the process again, we can just say go, just to make it more expedient," he said.
WATCH: Grand Island Town Board to consider DEC, EPA property access authorization
The discussion follows weeks of radiological screening by DEC and EPA in neighboring communities. According to the agencies, more than 1,050 properties in Erie and Niagara counties have been visited since July 23, with hundreds of property owners signing access agreements for screening.
Officials said the majority of screened properties have required no further action. However, a small number of properties have undergone additional investigation, including soil sampling and indoor air testing, after initial screening results met the threshold for follow-up.
The Town Board is scheduled to discuss the authorization during its meeting Monday. No authorization has been approved at this time.
