Contaminated Backyard Soil
I’m in the middle of a gut renovation on a 3 family brick house in Ft. Greene. I’ve been working on our plans for the yard and did a soil test to make sure everything is safe for our kids. Good thing I did: we’ve got really high lead contamination and high levels of some…
I’m in the middle of a gut renovation on a 3 family brick house in Ft. Greene. I’ve been working on our plans for the yard and did a soil test to make sure everything is safe for our kids. Good thing I did: we’ve got really high lead contamination and high levels of some other heavy metals as well. From what I’ve read online, heavy metal contamination is really common in New York City backyards. Apparently, we should be pretty safe if there’s no exposed soil. Most of the info I’ve read online recommends covering the ground with sod and just planting any edible plants in containers. I have a call in to a couple soil removal services to see how much that option would run too. (I was really excited to have extensive edible gardens as well as some laying hens possibly also.)
Has anyone dealt with this? Any advice? We have about 850 ppm of lead near the surface of the soil and about 1500 ppm around 8″ deep. (I did 2 samples.)
Thanks for any help!!
msb277, did you have any luck with soil removal services? Our soil’s packed with lead (like most of Brooklyn, by the sounds of things), but it’s also full of glass shards, bits of broken brick and what looks like construction site debris. It’s a mess. I’ve looked at soil remediation/removal places online, but it looks like they all deal with very large scale jobs. Did you find any that do domestic-level removal or cleaning?
Hey TM, you’re saying exactly what I was thinking–a variety of products/services for lots of different budgets:
*Blog with free content about cool stuff
*Classes about topics
*Consultations for people who want some real thinking done for them/need peace of mind because of children, etc.
*Normal design/build service for those folks who still have $20K left.
I was also thinking about a compost subscription service for apartment dwellers.
Squid, I think a consulting business for Brooklyn backyards would do really well for many reasons. The cost is high for design and installation of a garden by professional gardeners (I got quotes of $15K-20K for mine) and by the time brownstone owners are turning their attention to the backyards they’ve blown their money on renovating a long-neglected house. Secondly, the reason many people want a yard in a city is so they can learn gardening and do it themselves and have that experience to counter the day to day urban high density living experience. About pricing instead of hourly it should be a selection of packages in a range of prices that include a certain number of hours or days or visits. So there’s something for everybody.
Hi Home,
Grapes are a fruit, so I would definitely eat them. Depending on the level of contamination, I would stay away from leaves, roots or stems. But plants don’t store nutrients (or much else) in their flowers or fruits.
One of the things I want to find out is whether food items can be tested easily in Brooklyn for heavy metal contamination, so that this conceptual knowledge can be demonstrated in a way that’s easy for someone like a parent to believe/trust.
I happily compost all my clippings and use the compost in the front yard, where I am growing ornamental plants only. I can’t stand not to, I am a bit of a compost freak.
This is such great information. Thanks for sharing. Agent of the Squid–what do you think about grape vines? Are grapes grown in heavy metal areas edible? Also–i imagine the toxc waste classification also relates to grass grown–all green material fronm a heavy metal garden should not be composted?
I think your consulting services would be welcome in Brownstone Brooklyn!!!
Happy to help! Let me ask you guys a question:
I’m thinking of starting a landscaping business that helps negotiate backyard farming/sustainable backyard problems in the city: everything from design issues to how to handle problems like rats eating your compost, livestock ordinances, how to deal with contaminants.
I’m guessing that there’s a market for this kind of service because there’s a lot to know and edibles can be space-consuming and ugly, or something you wind up growing without eating because you never tested your soil and are frightened… but needn’t be.
But I’m guessing that the person who wants something like chickens or a serious composting setup already wants to garden, so the structure of this company would have to be different from a landscaper, more like a consultancy with the landscaping skills to kickstart a project, perhaps working directly with the client in a way that most landscapers don’t.
Would you pay for such a service? What would you want out of it?
Feedback appreciated!! I’m also looking for test-drivers so that I can develop a client base and a portfolio. If you want consulting/design work done at a ludicrously low fee, email me: heavymetaledibles@gmail.com
Wow, agent, this is enormously helpful — thank you from all of us would-be veggie gardeners. I’ve only grown flowers so far, but plan to start edibles next year when I get my garden back. This is terrific.
Thanks so much for the info everyone, especially from Squid!
great info Squid, thanks!