Health Risks from the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal

The blog A View from the Hook tackles the health concerns surrounding idling cruise ships at the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal in Red Hook. The Port Authority, the EPA and Brooklyn council members have recognized that cruise ships burning diesel at the port “damage lung tissue, increase respiratory illness, suppress immune systems, aggravate breathing problems and asthma,” says assemblywoman Joan Millman. A tariff (the rate of electricity supplied) has been proposed so ships could turn off their engines and hook up to “shore power” at the Cruise Terminal supplied by Con Edison. The Port Authority noted this act would reduce the 100 tons of pollutants emitted a year by 98 percent, and decrease the annual monetized health cost (an estimated 9 million dollars) caused by the idling ships. The problem? The Public Service Commission hasn’t taken any meaningful action yet and there is no budget to account for the Con Ed shore power supply. The Port Authority has already invested $8 million into the project, but Red Hook residents are still waiting for the Public Service Commission to set the tariff, allowing residents breathe easier, literally and metaphorically.
Brooklyn Residents, The Ships Are Killing You [A View From the Hook]