There’s Something in the Water

On Friday morning Greenpoint resident and community activist Laura Hofmann saw something unsettling. Out for a walk, to watch birds and enjoy the warm weather, Hofmann strolled over to the little park on Newtown Creek at the end of Manhattan Avenue. But, when she looked down into the water she noticed an oil slick. Though the source is unknown at this point, the slicks are becoming more and more common and the DEC has recently opened an investigation in an attempt to find out just where they are coming from.
After Hofmann made a phone call alerting DEC to the spill, the DEC Spill Response staff performed a preliminary investigation and discovered traces of oil and street debris in the slick. A larger site investigation is currently under way, and due to the recent series of rainstorms, there is a chance the oil spill may have resulted from sewage overflow from the nearby waste treatment facility.
This particular incident was not a large slick, but DEC is involved in an investigation to determine whether or not this is occurring on a repeated basis, because a cumulative impact could be of concern. Since area residents noted that this problem has occurred repeatedly, DEC has asked the NYC Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to investigate its sewer and storm-water system to determine if a continual source for this oil can be found. DEC will accompany the City agency on these investigations.
Though the slicks are comparatively minor, DEC has received reports about three different oil slick events at Newtown Creek since August of 2008. Several past slicks are attributed to coastal oil pollution events, which occur from time to time in the waters of New York City and cannot be easily tracked to a specific source. Small slicks can also result from petroleum leaks and spills on New York City streets, which are then washed by rain or weather into surrounding water bodies. However, in the past the DEC has discovered slicks linked to large oil spills on the street, oil dumping into storm drains in large quantities and lateral seepage underground into the sewer lines.
Newtown Creek is one of the most infamous and toxic bodies of water in the country. In the past several months, prominent elected officials including Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez and Concilmember Eric Gioia have rallied on behalf of the Creek being designated as a Federal Superfund site.
“Newtown Creek is already the most polluted urban waterway in the country, and has gone decades without clean up,” Gioia said. “We need to immediately identify the source of this new slick so we can clean up the creek and assure residents that there is no new harm to their communities.”