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Summary

COAL TAR

Coal Tar is the bi-product of coal gas. Coal was brought on boats and heated to produce gas used for cooking, heating, and lighting. After the gas was captured, the tar was cooled in storage tanks. As seen in the picture above, the tanks were not well sealed structures and often times, the tar escaped into the ground. And not just the surface, but deep into the ground. The marshland, acting like a sponge, absorbed the toxic, volatile, chemicals. And since they are volatile (meaning that they are constantly evaporating) they release their gasses back into the air that we breath. Emitting toxic plumes that can be dangerous to our health and the health of the environment.

But isn’t it a Superfund site, aren't they cleaning it up?
Only the canal is actually listed on the EPA's list of most polluted sites in the United States. It will be dredged and then capped to prevent coal tar deep in the native sediment from bubbling back up. The land surrounding the canal, which includes the MGP and Brownfield sites, are being remediated by the PRPs (potentially responsible parties) under the direction of NYS DEC. In most cases, our State agency is only asking the PRPs to scrape the top layer of soil off and to install a plastic vapor barrier, leaving deep pockets of coal tar in the ground. This is grossly inadequate and is not a long term solution.

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)

The VOC chemicals found in the ground, Benzene among others are known carcinogens. There is no safe level of exposure. There are State laws in place to protect us. But nobody is holding them accountable. We demand a more responsible clean up.

1. To protect the Superfund from continued contamination.
2. To protect current residents from breathing volatile air.
3. To ensure that future residents don’t have to live on top of it.

The Big 3 Offenders of toxic pollution

• Citizens Gas
• Fulton Gas
• Metropolitan Gas

Citizens Manufacturing Gas Site

• One of most polluted brownfields in the state if not the country.
• Toxic Tar depth: 150’ below ground.
• Current Owner: City of New York
• Responsible Party: National Grid
• Location: Smith btwn 5th Street & Huntington

Fulton Manufacturing Gas Site

• underneath Thomas Greene Park & the Double D Pool
• Coal tar depth: 0’-150’ below ground and migrating to other side of the canal.
• Current Owner: City of New York, Parks Department
• Responsible party: National Grid
• Location: Nevins btwn Douglas & DeGraw (Double D).

Metropolitan Manufactured Gas Site

• Current location of Lowe's and Big Reuse
• Current Owner: Two Trees
• Responsible Party: National Grid
• Location: 2nd Ave between 10th and 12th St
  

Larger map of all Brownfields and Superfund sites around Gowanus

source:Brownfield and Superfund site locations

NEXT STEPS, TAKE ACTION

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Heads up, Starting today, Monday October 17th, work will begin near the former Citizens Manufactured Gas Plant site to drill and collect soil and water samples and to further delineate potential MGP-related impacts that have migrated offsite.

GOWANUS, BROOKLYN - On September 6th, staffers to NYS Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon and NYC Council Member Shahana Hanif revealed publicly for the first time that DEC confirmed the release of toxic vapors at levels that triggered an emergency alarm and work stoppage on July 27th at a worksite adjacent to EPA’s massive Gowanus Canal Superfund zone. The worksite is part of the former Citizens Manufactured Gas Plant (MGP), which is currently undergoing partial remediation and toxic containment under the supervision of DEC, an effort that has been widely criticized by the EPA and the community for its inadequacy. 

Children who had been playing at St. Mary’s Playground—which is situated directly across from the heavily contaminated site—were the first to report to Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon’s office that they had smelled strong, prominent odors over several days, including July 27th. They were part of a camp run by the nearby International School of Brooklyn in Carroll Gardens and the smells, they said, seemed to be emanating from the former Citizens MGP site.

DEVELOPERS FLOUT EPA

PILE DRIVE INTO TOXIN-FILLED GOWANUS SITE

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COMMUNITY GROUP FILES INJUNCTION IN COURT TO PREVENT FURTHER DEVELOPER RECKLESSNESS AS JUNE 15TH DEADLINE FOR 421a APPROACHES

GOWANUS, BROOKLYN – Community coalition Voice of Gowanus doubled down on their lawsuit to require legitimate impact analysis at toxic sites in Gowanus as developers defied the EPA and drove piles into Superfund sites with no prior notice or EPA approval. The reckless pile driving endangers community health and sets a terrible precedent that developers’ greed can supersede the power of federal agencies.

Motion for Injunction Filed in State Court

In line with the demands of their Article 78 petition, Voice Of Gowanus has filed a motion for preliminary injunction to stop Gowanus Rezone-related construction activity in the area. As stated in the filing, "even the City-drafted Environmental Impact Statement concedes that 'any redevelopment involving subsurface disturbance could potentially increase pathways for human exposure to any subsurface hazardous materials present.’"

Greed Speeds Dangerous Push to Break Ground

Developers have pursued a brazen effort to drive piles and pour foundations without proper safety precautions or oversight in their race to meet the June 15th deadline for the 421a tax credit—a developer giveaway that former Council Member Brad Lander and former Mayor Bill de Blasio allowed to run rampant via the massive Gowanus Rezoning pushed through late last year.

“This is absolutely outrageous,” said Miranda Sielaff, a member of Voice of Gowanus, who lives near the site of the incident. “How is every level of government – city, state, and federal – failing to keep these developers in check?”

Voice of Gowanus sent a letter to elected officials—including NYS Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon and Council Members Shahana Hanif and Lincoln Restler—who had previously reached out to state and city agencies, flagging the incidents. VoG pushed for these representatives to go further, demanding that a Stop Work Order be put in place until a safety review could be conducted by EPA and inviting those officials to support their legal action.

Community Anger, A Petition Emerges

Sielaff and fellow members of Voice of Gowanus launched a petition that has now blown past 500 signatories. Anger is palpable in the blocks surrounding the pile driving. And for good reason.

“Residents are fired up,” said Martin Bisi, a local small business owner in Gowanus. “It’s one thing for a community member to have no knowledge of this pile driving into a poisoned site. But it’s another for the EPA to receive no notice and then be ignored when it demands that the work be halted.”

Breaking Open Toxic Land, Risk of Fumes

The Gowanus incident took place on the notorious Public Place site, a former manufactured gas plant site that remains riddled with coal tar even after a limited remediation that the EPA has publicly criticized. EPA officials have repeatedly questioned the city’s plan to build housing and a school at this location, given the risk of toxic vapors from contamination soaked deep into the soil. A rep from the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation stated at a public meeting that developers were allowed to proceed in order to meet the June 15th 421a deadline in a shocking move that put the interests of developers over the health and safety of the community.

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The Gowanus Rezone is an Environmental Disaster In the Making

In November 2021, the City approved an 82 block rezone of Gowanus, sweeping major environmental issues under the rug.

The Rezone:

• Will Put People on Highly Poisonous Land
• Will Make Sewage Problems Worse
• Ignores the Realities of Climate Change
• Endangers the Clean Up

Last week, VOG's own legal counsel Maureen Koetz addressed the VOG lawsuit and the many political and environmental issues that surround the Gowanus rezone with host Michael G. Haskin's on WBAI's radio program, "Living for the City."  Below, you can listen to the entire show, or read the transcript of Maureen's conversation with Michael. 

The future of the Gowanus rezoning is anything but certain as community coalition Voice of Gowanus filed a new lawsuit today vigorously attacking the profoundly illegal rezoning, highlighting multiple violations of federal and state environmental law. The suit, filed by Voice of Gowanus, Friends and Residents of Greater Gowanus (F.R.O.G.G.) and area residents, goes far beyond what any other recent neighborhood rezoning challenges have alleged, setting out multiple causes of action. 

Add your email below to stay up-to-date on the latest news and actions regarding the proposed Gowanus Rezone. (ONLY your email address is required to sign up below.)

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Posted by Voice of Gowanus · June 14, 2022 10:50 AM

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Let's Put People Over Profits in Gowanus!

Posted by Voice of Gowanus · April 22, 2022 12:48 PM