Report: Long Island has most contaminated water in NY

Long Island's water has the highest levels of certain dangerous chemicals in the entire state, according to a recent report from New York Public Interest Research Group.
"By reviewing all this data, we found that 176 water systems detected one or more emerging contaminants, which impacts 16 million New Yorkers," says Liz Moran, director of NYPIRG environmental policy.
Among the contaminants is 1,4-dioxane, a chemical found in many common household products. The compound is suspected of causing cancer and other health issues.
Adrienne Esposito, of Citizens Campaign for the Environment, says the report should make all Long Islanders want to know more about what's in their water. She says anything that seeps into the ground can seep into the water supply.
According to the report, Hicksville, Greenlawn, Hempstead and municipalities serviced by the Suffolk Water Authority are just some of the places with the highest levels of contaminants.
Suffolk Water Authority's CEO sent a statement saying: "Though emerging contaminants in groundwater caused by industrial pollution and others factors are certainly a significant concern, the Suffolk County Water Authority has addressed the issue through years of proactive and voluntary testing."
And Huntington Town Supervisor Chad Lupinacci said: "The report is alarming, not only for Greenlawn residents but for all residents of the Town of Huntington...We filed a civil suit against the entities responsible for 1,4-dioxane contamination on May 20th to hold them accountable for the costs of removing 1,4-dioxane from our local water supplies."
NYPIRG says it hopes that alerting people to what's in their water will lead New York lawmakers to make changes to get rid of the contaminants and keep it that way.
The report, called "What's in My Water," also says that while having contaminants in our water doesn't mean the public health is at risk, lawmakers should be pushing for more testing and tougher standards for water quality testing.