City For Superfunding Newtown But Not Gowanus

Here’s a tale of two polluted waterways. According to a Courier Life article, a few weeks ago the city officially threw its support behind a Superfund designation for Newtown Creek even though it is opposing the same designation for Gowanus. A rep for the mayor says that while the city has a “viable” cleanup plan for Gowanus, it doesn’t for Newtown. While critics say the city’s opposition to Gowanus being named a Superfund site has to do with there being development interests in the area, the city claims “the level of private investment near Newton is as significant as in the Gowanus.” Rep. Nydia Velázquez calls baloney on the city’s position: “Superfund has a proven track record of successfully cleaning up contaminated sites and making polluters pay the remediation costs. It is unclear why it would be permissible to utilize Superfund for one site yet oppose using it for the other, especially when the alternative, WRDA funding, isn’t a feasible option for either site.”
Gowanus and Newtown Not Created Equal [Courier Life]
Photo from Newtown Creek Alliance.