SHEEPSHEAD BAY'S ONLY INDEPENDENT NEWS BLOG

Source: Howard N2GOT / Flickr

Governor Andrew Cuomo approved a plan to inject some much needed funds to restore 28 acres of salt marsh in an effort to provide stability for the natural wildlife, as well as future storm protection. According to a press release, the project will be led by the Jamaica Bay Eco-Watchers and the Northeast Chapter of the American Littoral Society.

In their effort to restore and protect the salt marsh grasses, the state has approved $645,000 for the project. The state press release broke down the source of and dispersal of the funds raised:

“DEC [Department of Environmental Conservation] funds provided for this planting include $500,000 in compensatory mitigation associated with improvements to the Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge and $145,000 from a settlement for illegal sewage discharges to Shellbank Creek. Planting work will begin in mid-May and is expected to be complete by the end of June.”

Restoring the salt marshes will bring stability to the local wildlife and fish populations while also providing storm protection for the Broad Channel community. During storms, the marshes reduce the force of waves and storm surges.

Dan Mundy, Jr., the president of the Jamaica Bay Eco-Watchers, thanked the state and governor and stressed the environmental importance of the project.

“These wetland islands are critical components to one of the most important estuaries on the East Coast. This project will restore two wetland islands that are nurseries to the tremendous number of species of bird and marine wildlife. In addition, these islands will play a critical role in dissipating the impact of future storm events and in the process will help to protect the adjacent communities.”

Source: CUNY Institute for Sustainable Cities / Flickr

Volunteers are wanted to help celebrate the upcoming Earth Day by helping to clean up marine debris at the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in Queens, April 20 from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. You can get there via public transportation on the Q52/53 buses.

The cleanup will require moderate physical exertion, so be prepared to flex those muscles. You should dress for the weather — wear long pants, long sleeves, sturdy shoes and bring a pair (or more) of work gloves.

Anyone can help out and groups are welcome too. Registration is required — call (718) 318-4340 to sign up.

Photo Courtesy Of Jeremy Drakeford

Officials from the Parks Department and the National Parks Service are collaborating on plans to bring food concession stands, and bike and kayak rentals to Jamaica Bay, according to a report by the New York Daily News.

Officials hope that an expansion of services in the region will go hand-in-hand with the restoration of the bay.

“We’re excited about the future plans for Jamaica Bay,” Dan Mundy Jr. of Jamaica Bay Eco-Watchers told the Daily News. “People will have greater access to the bay and we will also be able to keep up with restoration programs.”

Dan Hendrick, who is making a documentary called Jamaica Bay Lives, told the Daily News that increased tourism friendly activities around the bay will have a positive impact on the community that lives near the bay.

But Hendrick said many area residents have a “disconnect” with the bay because they consider it polluted. He hopes by opening it up to different kinds of recreation — such as camping in areas such as Floyd Bennett Field — they will develop a connection.

While its nice that the Parks Department and the National Parks Service want to create a more tourist friendly Jamaica Bay, there is also a mixed message being sent as the industrialization of Floyd Bennett Field continues with the development of the Jamaica Bay pipeline project.

Despite this, officials are excited about transforming Jamaica Bay into a hotter tourist destination, hoping that added amenities will spark a resurgence of interest.

Source: Howard N2GOT / Flickr

A cadre of city, state and federal representatives spoke of Superstorm Sandy’s impact on Jamaica Bay last Tuesday at the latest Jamaica Bay Task Force meeting, according to a report by Rockawave.

The gathering was stuffed with over 150 people, all eager to hear from officials over the state of the Bay.

“Whatever you think of climate change, it is an indisputable fact that in the past 100 years water levels have risen,” said Carter Strickland, an NYC Department of Environmental Protection representative.

Learn the specifics of how Jamaica Bay weathered the storm.

Source: Williams

As we recently reported, the proposed construction of the Rockaways Pipeline Project crossed another hurdle towards reality when President Obama recently signed H.R. 2606, approving the measure that would connect a 3.17-mile natural gas line from the Atlantic Ocean underneath Jamaica Bay to a meter and regulating station in Floyd Bennett Field. The proposed project, which still needs the approval of the Federal Energy Regulation Commission, is still facing harsh and growing concern from residents, environmentalists, and local politicians, especially in the light of the devastation wrought by Superstorm Sandy, according to a report in the Gotham Gazette.

The report, which details much of what we’ve previously covered, highlights the new argument against the pipeline, growing from concerns over the risks and dangers of building a natural gas pipeline in an area already devastated by Sandy.

The damage Sandy visited upon Jamaica Bay was summed up by Dan Mundy, vice-president of Jamaica Bay Eco-Watchers,

“The Bay has taken a big hit,” [Mundy] added that “tremendous amounts” of fuel oil and debris had entered Jamaica Bay as a result of the storm, and that two freshwater ponds had breached “in a very dramatic fashion.” Mundy explained that tides had flushed out much of the oil, but he added that the post-storm period was a “critical time for mitigation”.

Local politicians have also begun speaking out against the project since the events of Superstorm Sandy. U.S. Representative Yvette Clarke emailed the Gotham Gazette stating, “Our need for independent energy cannot precede the safety of our community and environment.” State Senator Joseph Addabbo stressed the importance of  helping people of the local community recover from Sandy over starting a massive new pipeline project saying, “Doing this simultaneously with Sandy becomes a daunting task. People are trying to get their lives back.”

Another major concern are the changes that will be heading to Floyd Bennett Park should the project proceed. Karen Orlando, a local resident and member of the Floyd Bennett Garden Association told Gotham Gazette that, “This bill puts a pipeline under a popular beach and introduces private industrial use of a federal park, and it does so with no public input,” and that an “industrial infrastructure,” placed in Floyd Bennett field itself, “a couple hundred of feet from a community garden used by four to five-hundred members and their families,” would have negative impact as well.

Source: Williams

Issuing what appears to be the final nail in the coffin for opponents of the proposed natural gas Rockaway Pipeline Project, President Obama signed the New York City Natural Gas Supply Enhancement Act (H.R. 2606) this past Tuesday. Obama’s signature paves the way for the commencement of the project, which now only needs the approval of the Federal Energy Regulation Commission, according to a report by WYNC.

The proposed construction of the pipeline has faced fierce criticism from environmentalists who gathered thousands of signatures in opposition to the pipeline, and led dozens of protests.

The plan calls for a 3.17-mile pipeline connecting an existing line in the Atlantic through an underground path that cuts through the bottom of the Rockaways and Jamaica Bay to Floyd Bennett Field.

Chris Stockton, a representative of the Williams Companies, which is constructing the pipeline, promises that they will take great care in protecting Jamaica Bay telling WNYC that, “We’re not only burying it underground, but they put concrete mats over the pipe to make sure it doesn’t float to the surface, because you’re filling it with a gas. You want to make sure it doesn’t float.”

Environmentalists are concerned about the a meter and regulation station that will be built on Floyd Bennett Field. They warn that if another storm with Sandy’s power strikes the area, the field and station would be flooded.

The proposed placement of natural gas pipelines from Williams and National Grid. Source: Williams

According to the legislative calendar for the House of Representatives, H.R. 2606, better known as the New York City Natural Gas Supply Enhancement Act or the Jamaica Bay pipeline, is set to be voted on today. After the area where the pipeline will be installed was badly damaged due to Sandy, advocates against the pipeline warn that a major storm could happen again, and with the pipeline there the consequences could be far worse than ever before.

The proposed construction of this pipeline has been marred by dozens of protests and thousands of anti-pipeline petition signatures. Now that they’ve seen Sandy’s aftermath, advocates against the pipeline have added another reason not to ahead with construction to their list.

The Coalition Against the Rockaway Pipeline (CARP) writes:

It’s complete insanity to build a high-pressure gas pipeline and metering station in an area that has just been destroyed by Hurricane Sandy, and will REGULARLY experience such events, or worse, in the decades to come. We don’t need this gas — we need to stop climate change and switch to renewables.

This bill permits construction of a gas pipeline in a national park – right next to a wildlife refuge that is home to a dozen endangered and threatened species; right under a public beach that is used by thousands of New Yorkers every year; and right by the largest community garden on the East Coast.

In the wake of the Hurricane Sandy stopping this bill is imperative. The bill authorizes construction of a high-pressure gas pipeline and metering station in an area that has just experienced major flooding and fire – and will do so again as the oceans rise because of climate change. Thousands of lives could be jeopardized in the event of another hurricane or storm surge.

They urge others to join them in their opposition of the pipeline by calling local congressmembers Tuesday morning and telling them to vote “no” on H.R. 2606.

You can find your congressperson’s Washington number by going here.

The Coalition Against the Rockaway Pipeline (CARP) delivered petitions with 5,000 signatures to Senator Charles Schumer’s Manhattan office Tuesday as members of the environmental group push for a presidential veto of the project.

Although the House and the Senate passed the bill authorizing a gas pipeline to run through the Gateway National Recreation Area, CARP members don’t plan to give up.

“It is too late to the stop the bill from being passed. It’s not too late to show opposition to the project,” said Jonathan Fluck, CARP’s spokesperson.

The proposed Jamaica Bay pipeline would connect an existing natural gas pipeline three miles offshore with Southern Brooklyn. The pipeline would tunnel under Jacob Riis Park, cross Jamaica Bay and surface at Floyd Bennett Field. Williams Company, which is constructing the pipeline, plans to establish a metering station within a vacant hanger at the historic airfield.

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Source: Brocken Inaglory via Wikimedia Commons

On July 9, more than 700 Canada Geese were rounded up and killed at the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge. Instead of dumping the dead geese into landfills, the meat from the birds was donated to food pantries and soup kitchens in New York.

Normally, the birds are gassed by carbon dioxide, making them unfit for eating. However, this year, officials decided to donate the meat to the needy. According to Carol Bannerman, a USDA Wildlife Services spokeswoman, goose meat is not an uncommon protein. In New York State, big game hunters donate their catch to those in need regularly.

Last year, the geese that were caught were donated to food charities in Pennsylvania.

Don Riepe was there the day the geese were culled.

“They did it as humanely as possible,” he said to Capital New York. “They rounded them up and put them in individual crates, like you transport any live product.”

After the geese were caught, they were taken to a meat processor in upstate New York on the same day.

The packaged wild goose meat was processed and labeled with a health advisory before it was sent out to shelters. The label stated that the New York State Department of Health recommended “no more than two meals of the wild geese per month because they may have been exposed to environmental contaminants.”

However, reps from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation said that the meat was tested and posed no real concern to humans.

Others disagree. Jeff Tittel, director of the New Jersey Sierra Club, believes that the meat from near the airport is not safe for consumption.

“When airplanes take off they spray jet fuel and when they land they release jet fuel,” he said. “So do they really want that type of meat?”

Jean Grassman, a Brooklyn College professor of Health and Nutrition Sciences, said an urban contaminant called polychlorinated biphenyl, or PCB, may be a real risk for people.

“The concern is that they’re developmental toxicants,” Grassman stated. “The issue of contamination is a real possibility in wild fowl.”

Further, there is another concern pertaining to contamination of the goose meat. According to Jeanne Wilcox at the Food Bank for Westchester, “There was a possibility that the meat had birdshot — a type of shotgun shell, which could contain lead… anyone eating the meat should keep an eye out for shells while cutting it.”

On the whole, food banks don’t seem too skeptical when receiving game meat donations.

Peter Braglia from Long Island Cares said, “People don’t understand wild game is so much more nutritious than what you can buy in the store. There’s no hormones given to these birds.”