Ridgewood Is Home to the Most Radioactive Place in New York City

This week the New Yorker published a fascinating video about toxic sites in New York City. In particular, the video chronicles the history of the former Wolff-Alport Chemical Company, located at 1127-1129 Irving Avenue in Ridgewood. The company sold thorium to the government until the 1950s, and now the area has radiation levels high enough to cause an elevated risk of cancer for those who frequent it. The site is currently home to an auto body shop, an ice making facility, a construction company and a deli. A public school and daycare center are located 900 feet away. As Judith Enck, an EPA regional administrator, states in the video, “What really sticks with me is when I read the health report, and there was a recommendation that people not lay on their back in the auto body shop, and I just have this concern that all day long a number of guys are underneath a car not suspecting that just coming to work every to do their jobs is potentially causing a health risk for them.”

Because there are no other sites in New York with conditions as bad as Wolff-Alport, it looks highly likely the area will be Superfunded. The EPA is expected to make its decision on the matter this month. If it’s picked, the EPA will work with the businesses to make the process as non-invasive as possible.

Radioactive NYC [The New Yorker] via Gothamist
All Wolff-Alport Chemical Company coverage [Q’Stoner]