Bedford Union Army Scheduled Work

I live less than 500 feet from the Bedford Union Armory with small kids. I recently got a notice that are starting lead and asbestos work. I’ve been in touch with the developers through the get in touch about questions email on the letter. While the powers that be assure me that the abatement will follow the city’s protocols and there will be testing on site, I can’t help but think of us in the immediate environs being at great risk. While I’ve been asking about how the will test the air outside the building, how long the asbestos will be kept on site, work being done to the outside of the building I’m not getting answers. The start time of today has since been amended according to them as well though they can’t give me an accurate start time as of yet still. The lead on my stroller and into my place with a crawling baby is enough to make me wary of the job. I’ve contacted Cumbo’s office to no avail as well. I brought this up during the open comment period but everyone was so stuck on talking about housing that legitimate safety concerns about the roll out of any plan got lost. Any thoughts on this? It seems there is a lot we don’t understand about asbestos. Furthermore there’s no test for asbestos outside a building. We’ve all heard stories about what happened after 9/11 when they thought areas were safe to come back to again but they weren’t. Any and all opinions or advice welcome. Thanks! [IMG_2784 (1)](//muut.com/u/brownstoner/s1/:brownstoner:y7GE:img_27841.jpg.jpg)

yesbrooklyn

in General Discussion 6 years and 6 months ago

4

Please log in, in order to post replies!

4 replies

Newest Oldest

Guest User | 6 years and 6 months ago

string(1) "3"
string(6) "195579"

yesbrooklyn – it’s awful that these things still happen despite protocols and yet we continue to be forced to rely on them because what choice do we have? i think that lessons were learned from the air quality issues around 9/11 that carry through to today. abatement of lead and asbestos from an existing building are necessary parts of construction to protect workers, residents, visitors, clients, etc. whatever the end use of the building is going to be. my recommendation would be to clean more regularly, especially around windows, always take off your shoes in the house, and if you want to talk to someone about your concerns with the job contact your local city council member. this project is under a lot of scrutiny already because of the zoning changes that they’ve been requesting so that will probably get you a lot farther than contacting Cuomo, who probably doesn’t care.

yudashasom | 6 years and 6 months ago

string(1) "1"
object(WP_User)#4824 (8) {
  ["data"]=>
  object(stdClass)#4821 (12) {
    ["ID"]=>
    string(6) "194528"
    ["user_login"]=>
    string(10) "yudashasom"
    ["user_pass"]=>
    string(34) "$P$BKrcOOJj2qysH3kdOE3mMqxeyqPZ1m0"
    ["user_nicename"]=>
    string(10) "yudashasom"
    ["user_email"]=>
    string(20) "yudashasom@gmail.com"
    ["user_url"]=>
    string(0) ""
    ["user_registered"]=>
    string(19) "2017-08-10 14:07:32"
    ["user_activation_key"]=>
    string(0) ""
    ["user_status"]=>
    string(1) "0"
    ["display_name"]=>
    string(29) "Dasha Sominski Dasha Sominski"
    ["spam"]=>
    string(1) "0"
    ["deleted"]=>
    string(1) "0"
  }
  ["ID"]=>
  int(194528)
  ["caps"]=>
  array(1) {
    ["subscriber"]=>
    bool(true)
  }
  ["cap_key"]=>
  string(15) "wp_capabilities"
  ["roles"]=>
  array(1) {
    [0]=>
    string(10) "subscriber"
  }
  ["allcaps"]=>
  array(3) {
    ["read"]=>
    bool(true)
    ["level_0"]=>
    bool(true)
    ["subscriber"]=>
    bool(true)
  }
  ["filter"]=>
  NULL
  ["site_id":"WP_User":private]=>
  int(1)
}

What can you do about it besides worry yourself sick? A developer could care less about you, or your baby. And won’t do anything extra besides follow city protocols. We’re all exposed to this on a daily basis. You probably have lead and asbestos in your own house/backyard. If you weren’t a neighbor, you probably wouldn’t know about this project but you might walk/work nearby everyday. Don’t leave your stroller outside. Rats crawling all over it are probably worse than asbestos, lead etc.

yesbrooklyn | 6 years and 6 months ago

string(1) "1"
object(WP_User)#4820 (8) {
  ["data"]=>
  object(stdClass)#4819 (12) {
    ["ID"]=>
    string(6) "182644"
    ["user_login"]=>
    string(11) "yesbrooklyn"
    ["user_pass"]=>
    string(34) "$P$B7bBLdiakkjRFZTcsmIU5huUivjUFp1"
    ["user_nicename"]=>
    string(11) "yesbrooklyn"
    ["user_email"]=>
    string(23) "lexi.brandfon@gmail.com"
    ["user_url"]=>
    string(0) ""
    ["user_registered"]=>
    string(19) "2017-08-10 14:42:07"
    ["user_activation_key"]=>
    string(0) ""
    ["user_status"]=>
    string(1) "0"
    ["display_name"]=>
    string(11) "yesbrooklyn"
    ["spam"]=>
    string(1) "0"
    ["deleted"]=>
    string(1) "0"
  }
  ["ID"]=>
  int(182644)
  ["caps"]=>
  array(1) {
    ["bbp_participant"]=>
    bool(true)
  }
  ["cap_key"]=>
  string(15) "wp_capabilities"
  ["roles"]=>
  array(1) {
    [0]=>
    string(15) "bbp_participant"
  }
  ["allcaps"]=>
  array(1) {
    ["bbp_participant"]=>
    bool(true)
  }
  ["filter"]=>
  NULL
  ["site_id":"WP_User":private]=>
  int(1)
}

Of course the workers are at the greatest risk. That doesn’t mean the others who live close by aren’t at risk. My only point about 9/11 is that areas deemed to be safe were found to not be in some cases. With all the testing and PDFs about protocols obviously tests we currently have do not protect against all variables. We’ve all heard about lead in drinking water, right? There was probably a protocol for that too.

Guest User | 6 years and 6 months ago

string(1) "3"
string(6) "195579"

I’m not sure what you mean when you say “there is a lot we don’t understand about asbestos.” throughout an asbestos abatement project there is required to be “third party monitoring” by an independent firm specifically hired by the owner (not the abatement contractor) to do continuous air testing in all project-adjacent areas and to confirm that work is being done according to proper procedures. if their air testing picks up asbestos above a certain amount they can and will shut down the job. This procedure is for both interior and exterior work. i’m not as familiar with lead abatement but there are definitely ways to abate lead without allowing it to become an air pollutant. Any construction project, even without abatement, is going to generate a considerable amount of dust. You have no idea what is in that dust. You may need to clean more often, depending on how the wind is blowing. Keep in mind that the problems around 9/11 were due to the fact that the exposure was not controlled in any way (and couldn’t have been). The messaging was all wrong, yes, but it was a very different circumstance. Please also keep in mind that the people who are most at risk during abatement work are the workers themselves.
If you want to understand more about the asbestos abatement process – http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/air/asbestos_rules_20110203.pdf