The Applied Environmental Services (AES) Superfund Site is a 3.2-acre site located at One Shore Road, Glenwood Landing, Nassau County, New York on part of a peninsula surrounded by the waters of Motts Cove and Hempstead Harbor, which is off of Long Island Sound. Since 1939, numerous petrochemical operators have used the Site. Starting in 1974, part of the property was used for distribution and storage of chemical solvents. Between 1980 and 1983, a hazardous waste facility operated on the Site. AES accepted many types of hazardous waste, including waste oil, chlorinated organic solvents, acids, paints, benzene, toluene, heavy metals, and a variety of other organic chemical compounds. Shore Realty and NYSDEC performed a Site cleanup during 1985 and 1986. Cleanup activities in the mid-1980s included removing hazardous waste stored in drums, containers, and tanks contaminated with toluene, ethylbenzene, naphthalene, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). The Site was placed on the National Priorities List (NPL) in June of 1986.

Remedial investigations documented the presence of volatile organics, semi-volatile organics, and metals in Site media. Site contaminants measured at the highest concentrations include ethylbenzene, toluene, and xylene. Several decades of improper handling and spills of chemicals have contaminated soil, sediments, and groundwater. The highest soil concentrations were detected along the western portion of the Site (in the vicinity of the access road and the bulkhead) and under the elevated tank farm. The greatest groundwater contamination was recorded from water table wells along the western portion of the Site. Contaminate leachate flowed from behind the deteriorated bulkheads to the mudflats and into Motts Cove and Hempstead Harbor. Another main pathway of toxic contamination was the discharge of shallow groundwater containing non-aqueous phase organic chemicals onto the mudflats during low tide.