Workers in Protective Gear at Goudey Station on Riverside Drive

An ongoing investigation into environmental contamination is continuing at a former NYSEG generating plant near Johnson City.

Several people wearing heavy-duty protective suits were at the abandoned facility at 720 Riverside Drive in Westover this week.

An inspection of the old Goudey Station property was conducted on April 25, 2023. (Photo: WNBF News)

The site is located in the town of Union, just west of the Johnson City village line.

Town supervisor Robert Mack last month told WNBF News that code enforcement officials had discovered people stripping metal at the site. He said they apparently were on the property illegally.

Workers in protective gear at a former NYSEG generating plant on April 25, 2023. (Photo: WNBF News)

The state Department of Environmental Conservation and the federal Environmental Protection Agency were notified of the activity at the old generating plant.

The state Department of Labor Asbestos Control Bureau ordered a halt to any work at the site.

Mack said the people who had been removing scrap metal from the site had not been wearing protective suits as they peeled asbestos off pipes. He said those in charge of the operation appeared to have no concern about the hazardous materials on the property.

Protective gear was used by workers at the abandoned Riverside Drive site. (Photo: WNBF News)

The town supervisor said similar illegal activity has been reported at other locations across the country. He said the state and federal agencies expressed a strong interest in the matter because the activity was in progress when it was discovered.

A Department of Environmental Conservation police officer was posted at the entrance gate to the old Goudey Station site when a reporter visited the property Tuesday afternoon.

A DEC police officer at the entrance gate to the former Goudey Station plant on April 25, 2023. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)

The DEC and EPA have not responded to a request for information about the property and possible criminal activity at the site.

Police agencies in recent years have responded to several reports of unauthorized people removing valuable metal from the property. There also have been fires at the site that were ignited by intruders.

According to property records, a section of the former Goudey site was acquired by NRGY Development LLC of Florida for $400,000 last July.

A satellite view of the abandoned power plant off Riverside Drive in Westover. (Image: Google)

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com or (607) 545-2250. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.

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