Toxically Challenged? Domino Sugar Factory, Part I

This is the inaugural installment of a new feature that’ll examine environmental conditions at various sites throughout Brooklyn. The topic seems particularly pressing as developers plan more and more housing in areas that were, until very recently, home to heavy industry—and in some cases, still are. It’s well known that many of these areas—like large swaths of Gowanus, Red Hook, Williamsburg and Greenpoint, to name just a few—often have concomitant legacies of toxic contamination. What’s less known is the extent of pollution on specific sites; how one goes about identifying potential health risks; and, basically, whether moving to a shiny new condo in one of these neighborhoods sometimes amounts to moving to a toxic dump. We developed the feature along with Toxics Targeting, a company that’s mapped more than 21,000 government-reported toxic sites throughout New York City (see bottom for more info).

We decided the Domino Sugar factory, where plans to develop thousands of units of housing are picking up speed, would be a perfect place to start. Sugar refining occurred on the massive Williamsburg waterfront site from the 1850s until 2004, when American Sugar Refining pulled the plug on its operations and sold off the properties. Although the Domino factory was a hive of industrial activity for well over a century, its history—and the future of development efforts on the land—are inextricably linked to the industrial and manufacturing businesses all around it. Properties neighboring the Domino include the radioactive waste facility Radiac; ConEd and New York Power Authority plants; a brownfield; and a lot the Department of Environmental Protection has designated an E site, which signifies that it’s believed to be a hotbed of hazardous materials. In fact, compared to the environmental challenges at neighboring sites, the data tied to the Domino is relatively mild. This jibes with the developer’s spin on the situation. At a press conference back on July 24, what Michael Lappin, CEO of the developer CPC Resources, said that there were “no major environmental issues.” Of course that doesn’t mean there are no issues at all…

The most notable aspects of Domino’s toxic legacy involve oil spills and waste emissions. A few hundred gallons of petroleum were accidentally spilled at the factory in separate incidents between the ’90s and 2004. Most of the oil was cleaned up, though some of it was dumped into the East River. A report from a 126-gallon petroleum spill in ’99, for example, notes that less than 42 gallons went into the river. It’s impossible to say how much petroleum seeped into the soil under and around the Domino and, therefore, how much of it still remains. Per the Department of Environmental Conservation, oil that hasn’t been cleaned up can poison groundwater, and its vapors can create fire hazards.

The amount and types of waste that Domino produced while it was in operation are also potentially of concern to future residents. A report from the factory’s last year of operation shows it generated thousands of pounds of solid waste that exhibits the characteristic of ignitability, and large amounts of toxic chemicals like arsenic, lead, mercury and benzenes. As with the complex’s oil spills, however, the extent to which such chemicals polluted the site is unknown.

In sum, while the Domino is hardly virgin soil, it’s practically the Garden of Eden compared to many of the factories and buildings surrounding it. In our next installment, we’ll take a peek at those properties.
CPC Shows and Tells Its Plans for Domino [Brownstoner] GMAP P*Shark

Free Toxics Targeting maps, which detail toxic dumps, leaking oil tanks, gasoline spills and other major environmental hazards are available on Property Shark; the firm’s more in-depth maps (like the one we use above), profile up to 27 pollution categories and can be purchased for $150 via Property Shark.