Bethpage-Tribune_1985-02-14

              BETHB«GE
bT na 4 COPiES
0 E T H P A G E LIB
47 P O W E L L AV
B E T M P A G E NY I I 7 14
Island Trees Plainedge
also serving
Seaford Old Bethpage Plainview
VOL. 19 NO. 45 Week of Feb. 14 - Feb. 20,1985 20 cents per copy
Nassau Reaches Out
To Ethopia
County Executive Francis T. Purcell, center,
recently proclaimed "Reach Gut to Ethiopia
Month" in Nassau County and urged county resi­dents
to open their hearts and pocketbooks to
help the starving peopte of Ethiopia by contribut­ing
to the Nassau Community College Human
Relations Society fund drive. Shown, left to right,
are E.O.C. Community Relations Director Stan­ley
Johnson of Hempstead, Nassau Community
Cpllege President Sean Fanelli, drive chairperson
Professor Marquita James of Uniondale, Purcell,
Professor Victor Abravaya, committee member
Abe Hamrher of Freeport and Martin Eichinger
of Long beach, Purcell's representative on the
fund raising committee. Checks for contributions
to the fund should be made out to the UNICEF
Ethiopia Fund and sent to professor Marquita
James, History and Political Science Depart­ment,
Nassau Community College, Garden City,
N:Y. 11530.
H
a
P
P
y
r*^v^K, *
^tejT*'
V
a
I
e
n
t
••
I
e
9 s
D
a
y
Lent Nominates Bethpage Men
To Military Academies
Congressman Norman F. lent (R-East Rockaway), right, congratulates
his 1985 Military Academy nominees from Bethpage, who are, from left to
right: Robert Gardner, Merchant Marine Academy; arid Michael Mul-cahy.
Naval Academy. Robert and Michael were among the few students
nominated to military academies from among the more than 200 appli­cants
in the Fourth Congressional District.
1985 Superfund Cleanup Drive
Area residents conducted a news conference on February.
7 to announce the participation of several local community*
organizations in a national drive to win Congressional pas­sage
of a $13.5 billion Superfund cleanup bill to address
toxic hazard sites.
William Steinmetz of Bethpage represented the New York
Community Action Network, a statewide citizens organiza­tion,
and Joan Vecchione represented Citizens forPure
Water, a local group which has been active on water quality
issues affecting the South Farmingdale Water District, at
the Mineola event. In addition, community leaders from
Syosset, Hicksville and Port Jefferson were present, as well
as a leader of the Citizens Concerned About the Landfill
group of Port Washington. A message of support was read
from Residents Against Garbage Expansion (RAGE) of Old
Bethpage.
Participants expressed unhappiness with the slow pace of
cleanup activity at several national priority sites in the local
area, including the following locations: Old Bethpage land­fill,
Claremont Polychemical at Old Bethpage, Hooker
Chemical and Anchor Lithkemko in Hicksville, Liberty
Industrial in Farmingdale, and Kenmark Textiles, Preferred
Plating and Tronic Plating in East Farmingdale.
News conference participants took note of the efforts of
local organizations to win Superfund passage in 1984. Much
attention was focused on Rep. Norman F. Lent (R-East
Rockaway), who serves as the ranking Republican on the
National Campaign Against Toxic Hazards news confer­ence
in Mineola on Feb. 7 included the following partici­pants:
Sierra Club leader Peter Wrba of Port Jefferson;
Ellen Markowski of Port Washington cleanup group, Wil­liam
Steinmetz of Bethpage representing New York CAN,
Sue Gang and of Syosset and Carol Mango of Hicksville,
also New York CAN members, and North Massapequa
resident Joan Vecchione of Citizens for Pure Water.
House subcommittee which handles the toxic cleanup legis­lation.
A bipartisan $19 billion Superfund bill co-sponsored
by Rep. Lent and Rep. James Florio (D-NJ) passed the
House by a wide margin in August, but the bill failed to gain
Senate passage.
The citizen groups' efforts in 1985 will seek passage of a
bill to reauthorize the Superfund at $13.5 billion, 88% of
which would be collected from fees on those responsible for
creating pollution problems. Other improvements sought
include mandatory cleanup timetables, strict cleanup stand­ards,
greater community participation in the development
and implementation of the program, and recourse for vic­tims
of toxic hazard exposure; by allowing them to brings
compensation suits in federal court and by setting aside a
portion of the funds for victims without other recourse.
Other organizations supporting the National Campaign
Against Toxic Hazards include the South Shore Audubon
Society, Friends of the Earth, the United Teachers of Island
Trees, the Citizens Clearinghouse for Hazardous Wastes,
the Consumer Federation of America and the Natural
Resources Defense Council.
The cleanup drive has a speakers' bureau for interested
organizations, and will provide factsheets, sample letters
and petitions and other information to interested parties.
Individuals may contact the Long Island office of the New
York Tonimunity Action Network at #691-5565.