From 1868 to 1988, the Geneva Foundry operated in Geneva, NY manufacturing cast iron components. According to historical records the site did not have pollution control on its smokestack until 1970. Even after that, the controls did not work as they should have. The foundry used recycled iron that contained lead and other metals while the furnaces burned coal containing arsenic and mercury. In 1986, a neighbor to the foundry complained to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation about chemical drums that were leaking near their property. That complaint led to major contamination discovery 30-years later.
