Between 1974 and 1980, tens of thousands of gallons of toxic industrial waste were dumped illegally at the Brookfield landfill in Staten Island. It was one of five New York City landfills involved in a 1982 federal investigation into illegal dumping which sent a city Department of Sanitation official and a hauling operator to prison. While cleanup has concluded at the four other landfills involved in the 1982 investigation, work still has yet to begin on the Brookfield site in Staten Island.

Earthjustice represented Staten Island residents in a lawsuit against the city of New York to force the cleanup of this abandoned toxic waste dump. In 2010, the city signed a court settlement with residents agreeing to a 2013 deadline for cleanup. Once the cleanup phase of the project is complete, the city intends to turn the former toxic wasteland into a community park.