Surprise! Gowanus Canal is Super Contaminated!
Yesterday the EPA came out with a report from the first phase of a federal investigation into what exactly is in the Gowanus Canal and where it’s actually coming from. If you’re brave enough to read it in full, the PDF can be downloaded here. The Brooklyn Paper breaks down the report, which finds that…
Yesterday the EPA came out with a report from the first phase of a federal investigation into what exactly is in the Gowanus Canal and where it’s actually coming from. If you’re brave enough to read it in full, the PDF can be downloaded here. The Brooklyn Paper breaks down the report, which finds that “uncontrolled discharges of sewage, storm water and other types of discharges into the Gowanus continue to contaminate the canal.” There are more than a dozen contaminants, two of which are suspected carcinogens. Next up the EPA will review different options to clean up the canal and then remove all the existing debris and strengthen the bulkheads. Even after all remediation is said and done, EPA Regional Administrator Judith Enck says, The level of contamination is so severe that I don’t feel comfortable saying that when we’re done, it will be fishable or swimmable. Yeah, we think we’ll pass.
Photo by Jackie Weisburg
The flushing tunnel probably, but the canal cleanup is not paid for by the city.
The city won’t divert the sewage probably because they can’t afford a project like that.
I’m pretty sure that the city is responsible for the flushing tunnel, and it is certainly responsible for the combined sewer system.
“I think the City is wasting time. and not to mention tons of money that could be used elsewhere, heaven knows we have deficits all over the freaking place”
The city isn’t paying for this.
Your headline made me laugh.
So after all is said and done and the clean up will take 10 years, and even then they are still not sure, millions of dollars are to be spent, yet the overflow of sewage is still going to be dumped into the canal?
That makes no sense what so ever. The sewage should be addressed first.
I still feel the canal should be dammed and drained and filled in. It is a totally useless waterway that is no longer needed and has become a blight on the neighborhood.
I think the City is wasting time. and not to mention tons of money that could be used elsewhere, heaven knows we have deficits all over the freaking place…..yet now, after all these years they want the canal cleaned up????
Who thinks this shit up???
All the flushing in the world isn’t going to do diddly squat for the canal.
They tried that with Love Canal and look how well that worked out.
My understanding is that the flushing tunnel will not directly divert any sewer overflow.
The overflow will still be dumped into the canal, while the flushing tunnel pushes harbor water from the Buttermilk Channel into the head of the canal, which will then help the sewage travel down the canal and into the harbor.
While that would be an improvement, it seems like a better solution would be to not put the sewage into an tight space to begin with.
I would not be opposed to filling in the canal, but I don’t see it ever happening given current attitudes.
although the geography of the city is largely artificial, it is apparently a crime against god and humanity to make any additional changes.
Divert the storm overflow with tunnels/pipes and cap/ fill the whole thing in. We dont get our drinking water from any nearby sources and any leaching will be prevented from leaching up with a clay/platic cap similar to what they use to fill in open pit mines once exhausted.
We dont need a water canal in the middle of Brooklyn anymore, and it would be infinately cheaper than what these loons are talking about.
They are currently upgrading the flushing tunnel that’s supposed help divert more of the sewer overflow into the harbor.