New York Seeks $5 Million for Cleanup of Former Dry Cleaner Site

New York state sued to recoup over $5 million in cleanup costs from a former industrial dry cleaner in Nassau County on Wednesday.

Richmond Associates LP, the current owner of the almost four acre site in the city of Jericho, N.Y., is liable for the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s remediation of the toxic dry cleaning solvent tetrachloroethene under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, according to the lawsuit filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

The solvent, also known as tetrachloroethylene or perchloroethylene (PCE), was significantly used by previous owners and ...