The waters of the Gowanus Canal
Active Gowanus/ Carroll Gardens residents continue to write letters to the Environmental Protection Agency's Administrator Lisa Jackson in Washington, respectfully reminding her that the agency's role is to, well...protect the environment and not the interests of Mayor Bloomberg and his cronies.
Below is a letter by Carroll Gardener Jeff Miles, who so eloquently states what many of us here in the neighborhood feel. Thanks, Jeff, for allowing me to post it on PMFA.
Dear Administrator Jackson:
As residents of Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, we took great pride in working for, supporting, and voting for President Obama, shared the joy in his election, and looked forward to an administration that re-asserted the notion of open and transparent government. Moreover, it gave us hope that there would be a return of reason in the decisions taken regarding such critical issues as the environment, in contrast to the backroom dealings that seemed the hallmark of recent years past.
As a scientist, I was impressed by earlier assertions that the EPA, in its consideration of the Gowanus Canal as a superfund-designated site, would rely upon the guidance of the scientific evidence in making decisions about the appropriateness of the site for remediation, the identification of specific sources of contamination, and their causality. I have faith in the collective experience in the scientific community in these areas, have read a number of very insightful publications studying the complex systems involving the canal, and felt confident that the expertise of the EPA and its many contributors, in the context of the legal standing uniquely afforded your Federal agency, were well poised to carry out the necessary steps to make significant progress toward reversing the decades-long abuses of this area, and would establish a basis for immediate and continued remediation.
In that context, I was disheartened to hear rumors suggesting that a deal may be made to allow local, commercial interests to prevail where science and reason would strongly suggest otherwise.
As a parent and grandparent, as a resident and neighbor to those that I know share our concerns, I can only hope that these rumors prove false, and that the EPA, under your leadership, will withstand the pressures brought by those with narrow interests who would seek expedient alternatives that do little other than make a few much richer.
Watching the recent documentaries of the National Parks should remind us all that many of the great resources that we have today result from the courageous and far-sighted actions of a few. I am hoping we can all look back at the decisions taken, in this regard, with similar pride.
Jeffrey M. Miles
***Please send your own email or phone to the following:
Comments: 202-456-1111
Switchboard: 202-456-1414
FAX: 202-456-2461
*NY Senator Charles Schumer: 914-734-1532
For Home Page, click Pardon Me For Asking
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2 comments:
Great letter!
I am considering relocating my business to the Gowanus Canal area - can anyone direct me to the map showing what property is within the Superfund and what property is out? All I can find is this silly map:
http://gowanusbydesign.com/Clean_Up_files/Gowanus_Potential_Superfund_Map.pdf
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