Yachting In The Gowanus Bay...In 1877

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Yacht Rendez-Vous, Gowanus Bay, Brooklyn

Yes, my friends, yachting in the Gowanus Bay...back in 1877! This beautiful hand-colored wood engraving is from the Park Slope Gallery, who has a huge collection of historic Brooklyn material.
I know it is hard to imagine, but hopefully, one day the waters of the Gowanus waterway will be clean enough so that it can be used for recreation, without fear of coming in contact with dangerous toxic materials.
To help make that a reality, make sure you sign the "Superfund Gowanus Petition."
Here is what some of our neighbors are saying on the petition about the Superfund designation of the Gowanus Canal:
As a lifelong resident of Brooklyn and a member of the historic brownstone community since 1967, I have traveled across the bridges of the Gowanus on a very regular basis. With the Industrial Revolution, and without understanding of the ramifications of the effects of chemical wastes on the health of the community, a waterway once teeming with life was reduced to a sickly green toxic mess that could give off literally poisonous fumes under certain conditions. I have been witness to the neglect of the waterway and mourned the fact that it has always had enormous potential. When repairs were made to the flushing tunnel in the 1990's, there was significant improvement, but since there was such a high degree of toxicity from the chemicals deposited over such a long period, a more comprehensive cleanup is surely necessary. The notion of further development along the canal without such a cleanup is utterly wrongheaded. The short-sightedness is mindnumbing! Let's trust scientific data, not land speculators.
The Gowanus Canal has been the victim of a combination of abuse and neglect for far too long. Although well intentioned, admirable measures have been taken, it is now painfully clear that they have been dismally inadequate. The job is simply too big, the toxins too fierce, the cross contamination too rampant. Comprehensive remediation is the only solution. The Federal Government is the only one with the tools and resources necessary to successfully tackle this environmental nightmare. We are both grateful to New York State Commissioner Grannis, of the Dept of Environmental Conservation, for recognizing the severity and scope of this problem and for being courageous enough to ring the bell and bang on the door of the US Environmental Protection Agency to ask for help.

The Gowanus Canal has a rich and colorful history. It has been polluted for well over a century. Those of us who live here haven't given up hope that one day our government will step in and use our taxes to make the waterway environmentally safe. Some attempts have been made over the years, but here we live, with a canal of toxic waste as our backyard. Please support the Superfund designation of the canal. It is time.

Until now we have heard nothing but vague assurances that the canal would be cleaned and only after the developers make their profits and we have placed people in harms way. This is exactly the wrong way to go about developing the canal corridor. First we should clean it and then develop it with confidence that no shortcuts were taken and that the area is safe for habitation. The EPA cleanup is the only way we can be sure that the emphasis will be on cleanup rather than development and a fast profit.

Please let's see the Gowanas restored to health, beauty, and public access. There is an opportunity to create and maintain is distinctive piece of green and water in our borough that will bring enjoyment far into the future. Allowing the area to be the site of even more development would deny so many of a great resource.

I have been a resident of Carroll Gardens since 1973, and I live a block and a half from the Gowanus Canal. My ancestor Adam Brouwer (12 generations ago) came to Brooklyn from Cologne in 1654 and built three tidal mills in the Gowanus wetlands. I love my neighborhood, I honor my ancestral connection to this area, and I want to see the canal returned to something resembling a clean state. The EPA must step in here, because New York City does not have the political record, the ethical will, or the financial resources to make this happen. Please make this a Superfund site and finally clean up this disgrace. Yes, EPA, Superfund me!

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