Verizon last week announced it conducted lead cable testing in three sites mentioned in the Wall Street Journal’s July 9 investigative report, finding none of the locations had lead-contaminated soil.
The locations in question are Wappinger Falls, New York, Coal Center, Pennsylvania and West Orange, New Jersey. Verizon said it hired “third-party experts” to collect and test “discrete soil samples” as well as estimate average soil lead levels in those areas.
In a letter addressed to New York congressman Pat Ryan, the carrier said the third party used a technique called incremental sampling methodology, which “collects multiple samples across the individual sampling units and then combines, processes, and tests the consolidated soil sample to yield estimates of the average soil lead level.”