EPA Extends Gowanus Canal Superfund Comment Period For Clean-Up Plan. Hosts Two Important Meetings This Week

A few important announcements from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regarding the Gowanus Canal Superfund.
First, the agency has just extended the public comment period another 30 days so that the community  has more time to weigh in on the  Proposed Clean-Up Plan.  From the EPA:

On December 27, 2012, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a proposed cleanup plan for the Gowanus Canal, which includes removing some of the contaminated sediment and capping dredged areas. The proposed plan also includes controls to prevent raw sewage overflows and other land-based sources of contamination from compromising the cleanup. The cost of the cleanup plan is expected to be between $467 and $504 million. The EPA is extending the public comment period for the plan to April 27.

The EPA had already given the community a total of 90 days to comment on the plan, much longer than the 30 days necessary under law.  Back in 2010, during the comment period prior to the EPA listing the canal as a Superfund, our elected officials and the City Of New York asked for two extensions.  On the part of the City, one of the waterway's  biggest polluters, it was a clear attempt to slow down the process.  After all, the City was lobbying hard to stop the EPA from stepping in.
By asking for another extension now, the City's motives are no different.
Let us never forget that New York City has been masterfully and criminally neglecting their responsibility for the clean-up by simply delaying and delaying....and delaying.

Some would say that this latest extension is necessary for the general public.  I see it as yet another way for the City of New York and Mayor Bloomberg to push the process out further.
30 extra days don't seem so very much, but until we get to the Record Of Decision,  the actual design and the clean-up phase cannot start.
Judith Enk, EPA Regional Administrator for Region 2, should not have given in this time and should have stuck to the 90 days. This extension just stops the forward momentum.

Two Important Meetings This Week

I encourage everyone in the community to attend one or both of these important EPA meetings on the Gowanus Canal.

On February 11, the Gowanus Canal Community Advisory Group will meet with the EPA regarding the proposed plan from 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm at the P.S. 58 Auditorium, 330 Smith Street, Brooklyn. The public is welcome.

On February 13, the EPA will be in the Red Hook community to discuss in more detail the specifics of the proposed plan. That meeting is scheduled to begin at 6:30 PM at P.S. 15, located at 71 Sullivan Street in Red Hook, Brooklyn. The public is welcome.

To read EPA’s proposed plan for the Gowanus Canal site or for more information on the canal, visit http://www.epa.gov/region02/superfund/npl/gowanus or visit the EPA’s document repositories at the Carroll Gardens Library at 396 Clinton St. in Brooklyn or the Joseph Miccio Community Center, 110 West 9th Street, Brooklyn. 

Written comments on the proposed plan should be addressed to:

Christos Tsiamis

Project Manager

Central New York Remediation Section

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

290 Broadway, 20th Floor

New York, New York 10007-1866

e-mail: GowanusCanalComments.Region2@epa.gov

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Reminder! Two Important EPA Meetings This Week To Discuss Proposed Gowanus Canal Cleanup Plan

As many of you no doubt already know, on December 27th, the Environmental Protection Agency released the Proposed Plan for the Superfund clean-up of the Gowanus Canal. The agency has scheduled two public meetings, one in Carroll Gardens and the second in Red Hook, to discuss the details and to answer questions about the plan. I urge everyone in the community to attend since this is the best opportunity to speak directly with Christos Tsiamis, EPA's Project Manager for the Gowanus and with members of his team. So come prepared with your questions.

Above, pleased find the details about the meetings.  *Note that the time for the Carroll Gardens meeting has been changed from 7 PM to 6:30 Pm to allow for more time.

To access the EPA’s proposed plan for the Gowanus Canal site or for more information on the canal, visit http://www.epa.gov/region02/superfund/npl/gowanus/ or visit the EPA’s document repositories at the Carroll Gardens Library at 396 Clinton St. in Brooklyn or the Joseph Miccio Community Center, 110 West 9th Street, Brooklyn.

The EPA will accept public comments on its proposed plan until March 28, 2013.
Written comments on the proposed plan should be addressed to:

Christos Tsiamis

Project Manager

Central New York Remediation Section

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

290 Broadway, 20th Floor

New York, New York 10007-1866

e-mail: GowanusCanalComments.Region2@epa.gov

OR, contact Natalie Loney, Community Involvement Coordinator, at 212-637-3639,

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Checking In On The Gowanus Whole Foods Site

Gowanus Whole Foods site as seen from Third Street Bridge

Looking at the store's future parking lot

From Third Street

From Third Avenue

The foundation of the future store

Waterproofing applied to foundation

Work at the future Whole Foods Market site at Third Avenue and Third Street and Gowanus has progressed quite a bit over the last few weeks.

The approximately 2.15 acre lot on the shores of the Gowanus Canal has now been fully remediated under the Brownfield Clean-Up Program and underground tanks and soil impacted with contaminants have been excavated and disposed of.

The site, originally comprised of a conglomeration of urban fill unsuitable for load bearing, had varying street elevations and a grade change of up to 12 feet'. In the last few weeks, the land has been backfilled and graded.

Towards Third Avenue, the foundation for the actual store has already been poured.
Crews are currently applying the heavy duty waterproofing material needed because of the high water table at that location. The site also lies in a Flood Zone A.

I was a bit curious about the "Warning Soil Remediation Exclusion sign" that is still prominently displayed on the lot towards the Canal, especially since I had heard that the clean-up had been completed.

I sent the photo to the Environmental Protection Agency Region 2 office to inquire. The agency reached out to BL Companies, the architectural engineering contractor at the Gowanus Canal site.

Here is the response:

"BL Company clarified that remediation of the site is complete. They also clarified that the sign “Soil Remediation Exclusion Zone” should read “Warning Exclusion Zone”. Exclusion zones are set up on the site during construction activities to prevent unqualified/unauthorized personnel from entering specific areas of the site. Apparently, there was an oversight and the existing signs will be replaced with new ones accordingly."

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EPA Region 2 Releases Its Proposed Plan For The Superfund Clean-Up Of The Gowanus Canal

As planned, EPA Region 2 just released its proposed plan for the clean-up of the Gowanus Canal. This is great news for the Gowanus Community. Even better news still is that the proposed plan also includes "controls to prevent raw sewage overflows and other land-based sources of contamination from compromising the cleanup."
It's a huge step, which brings us ever so closer to actually starting the actual clean-up of the polluted waterway. The fact that the proposed plan addresses the Combined Sewer Overflow is a major victory for neighborhood residents, who had advocated that the CSO issue be resolved.
Below is the EPA press release:

EPA Proposes Plan for Cleaning Up Gowanus Canal

Multi-million Dollar Cleanup to Revitalize Polluted Brooklyn Waterway

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced a proposed cleanup plan for the Gowanus Canal that includes removing some of the contaminated sediment and capping dredged areas. The proposed plan also includes controls to prevent raw sewage overflows and other land-based sources of contamination from compromising the cleanup. The cost of the cleanup plan is expected to be between $467 and $504 million.

The EPA will accept public comments on its proposed plan until March 28, 2013. The EPA will hold
public meetings on January 23, 2013 at 7:00 p.m. at Public School 58 (the Carroll School), 330 Smith
Street, Brooklyn and on January 24, 2013 at 7:00 p.m. at the Joseph Miccio Community Center, 110
West 9th Street, Brooklyn to discuss the proposed plan and answer questions.

“The proposed cleanup plan for the Gowanus Canal will make essential progress in removing toxic
contaminants from this heavily polluted and battered waterway,” said Judith A. Enck, EPA Regional
Administrator. “Our overall goal is to reduce pollution and protect the health of people who live and
work in this community. The EPA encourages people to attend the January public meetings on the
proposed plan and submit written comments no later than March 28.”

More than a dozen contaminants, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and heavy metals, including mercury, lead and copper, were found at high levels in the sediment in the Gowanus Canal. PAHs and heavy metals were also found in the canal water. PAHs are a group of chemicals that are formed during the incomplete burning of coal, oil, gas, wood, garbage or other organic substances. PCBs were used as coolants and lubricants in transformers, capacitors and other electrical equipment and their manufacture was banned in 1979. PCBs and PAHs are suspected to be cancer-causing and PCBs can have neurological effects as well. Consumption of fish from the canal continues to this day notwithstanding fish advisories.

Completed in the mid-1800s, the Gowanus Canal was once a major industrial transportation route.
Manufactured gas plants, paper mills, tanneries and chemical plants are among the many facilities that
operated along the canal. As a result of years of discharges, stormwater runoff, raw sewage overflows
from sewer systems that carry sanitary waste from homes and rainwater from storm drains and
industrial pollutants, the Gowanus Canal has become one of the nation's most seriously contaminated
water bodies. In 2010, the Gowanus Canal was added to the Superfund list of the nation’s most
contaminated hazardous waste sites. The EPA has identified numerous parties that are potentially
responsible for the contamination including National Grid and the city of New York.

The evaluation of the alternatives for cleaning up the Gowanus Canal was divided into three segments
that correspond to the upper, middle and lower portions of the canal. The first segment, which runs
from the top of the canal to 3rd Street, and the 2nd segment, which runs from 3rd Street to just south of
the Hamilton Avenue Bridge, contain the most heavily-contaminated sediment. In the third segment,
which runs from the Hamilton Avenue Bridge to the mouth of the canal, the sediment is less
contaminated than sediment in the other segments.

For the first and second segments of the canal, the EPA is proposing to dredge approximately 307,000
cubic yards of highly contaminated sediment. In some areas where the sediment is contaminated with
liquid coal tar, the EPA is proposing to stabilize the sediment by mixing it with concrete or similar
materials. The stabilized areas would then be covered with multiple layers of clean material, including
an “active” layer made of a specific type of clay that will remove PAH contamination that could well up from below, an “isolation” layer of sand and gravel that will ensure that the contaminants are not
exposed, and an “armor” layer of heavier gravel and stone to prevent erosion of the underlying layers
from boat traffic and currents. Finally, clean sand would be placed on top of the “armor” layer to restore the canal bottom as a habitat. The plan also calls for removing contaminated material placed in the 1st Street Turning Basin decades ago.

For the third segment, the EPA is proposing to dredge 281,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment
and cap the area with an armor layer and a layer of sand to help restore habitat.

The proposed plan includes various methods for managing the contaminated sediment after dredging,
depending on the levels of contamination. The proposed methods include transporting the dredged
sediment to an off-site permitted disposal facility, transporting it to a location where the sediment can
be treated and the possible beneficial reuse of some of the sediment after treatment.

In addition, the proposed plan calls for additional controls to significantly reduce combined sewer
overflows into the canal. The EPA is concerned that such overflows would contribute to the
recontamination of the canal after its cleanup. The EPA is proposing that combined sewer overflow
discharges from two major outfalls in the upper portion of the canal be outfitted with controls to reduce
the total volume of discharges from those outfalls by 58% to 74%.

Contaminated land sites along the canal, including three former manufactured gas plants, are being
addressed by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Other potential sources
of continuing contaminant discharges to the canal have been referred to the state of New York and will
be investigated and addressed as necessary.

Written comments on the proposed plan should be addressed to:

Christos Tsiamis

Project Manager

Central New York Remediation Section

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

290 Broadway, 20th Floor

New York, New York 10007-1866

e-mail: GowanusCanalComments.Region2@epa.gov

OR, contact Natalie Loney, Community Involvement Coordinator, at 212-637-3639,

To read EPA’s proposed plan for the Gowanus Canal site or for more information on the canal, visit http://www.epa.gov/region02/superfund/npl/gowanus/ or visit the EPA’s document repositories at the Carroll Gardens Library at 396 Clinton St. in Brooklyn or the Joseph Miccio Community Center, 110 West 9th Street, Brooklyn. The documents will be available in the repositories on December 28, 2012.

For a Google Earth aerial view of the Gowanus Canal, visit
http://www.epa.gov/region2/kml/gowanus_creek_and_gowanus_canal.kmz.  (Please note that you must have Google Earth installed on your computer to view the map. To download Google Earth, visit
http://earth.google.com/download-earth.html).

Follow EPA Region 2 on Twitter at http://twitter.com/eparegion2 and visit our Facebook page,
http://www.facebook.com/eparegion2.

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"Stop Providing Cover For City" Community Tells NYS DEC At Gowanus CAG Meeting

S

Gary Kline, Jeff Myers, Robert Schick and James Tierney of NYS DEC

James Tierney, Assistant Commissioner for Water Resources for DEC

Gary Kline of DEC

Jeff Myers of DEC

Assemblywoman Joan Millman and State Senator Daniel Squadron

CAG Member Steven Miller

Josh Verlun, CAG member and Legal Council for Riverkeeper

At last night's meeting between representatives of New York State's Department Of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and members of  US Environmental Protection Agency's Gowanus Canal Superfund Community Advisory Group (CAG) at PS 32, the discussion centered mostly on the State’s role in the enforcement of Clean Water Act requirements to eliminate Combined Sewage Overflow from the canal and how the State is coordinating with EPA’s Superfund cleanup process.

The DEC was mostly responsible for  the US Environmental Protection Agency stepping in and declaring the Gowanus Canal a Superfund site.  It is a decision that the DEC seems to stand by.

"We support the most rapid, possible removal of the toxic contaminants by dredging it from the Gowanus Canal. We want it capped and stabilized thereafter and we want it to happen soon.  There is no doubt that there is support from within DEC from Commissioner Joe Martens down," 

James Tierney, Assistant Commissioner for Water Resources for DEC, stated last night.

However,  the Superfund program is meant to only address the highly toxic material at the bottom of the historic industrial waterway,  It is not meant to address sewage.

The State has been slow to address the CSO issue in any meaningful way under the Clean Water Act.

Instead, DEC has entered into a consent order with New York City's Department Of Environmental Protection, which buys the city more time to solve the problem by implementing  a "phased approach."

The first phase is a  $150 million dollar upgrade project to the flushing tunnel and the reconstruction of the flushing tunnel that will reduce the total amount of CSO into the canal by 34%. A green infrastructure element of the plan will reduce the amount by another 9%.  

"Those are not my projections, but the City's. So take that as being the source," Tierney told an already skeptical crowd.

These percentages simply aren't high enough for many on the CAG and in the community. Even the DEC had to admit that they are 'floatable targets' and depend on rain amounts.

CAG member Steven Miller expressed the sentiment of many when he told Tierney last night that "the Clean Water Act has failed this community."  

Recently, the CAG unanimously passed a resolution calling for a 100% cessation of CSOs.

In addition, since  the CSOs have been found to be a significant contributor of harmful sediment and Superfund regulated Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PHAs) and metals to the canal,  the CAG has asked that the EPA, "under their Superfund authority, take the necessary measures that will ensure protection of the proposed Superfund remedy."

Addressing the CAG request for CSO controls as part of a Superfund remedy, Tierney stated: "Bringing those CSO levels down to zero has an enormous price tag attached to it.  It could be as high as $400 million.*  There are gigantic tanks involved." Further, he added:   "When it comes to CSOs there is a lot of interest in this by DEC, because we have never had a Superfund clean-up that incorporated a full blown CSO control plan.  Just so that you realize, that's brand new,"  Tierney insisted.  

He repeatedly talked about the high cost of retention basins and seemed to suggest strongly that if forced to spend the money, there may be legal action.

"It's unlikely that this process, particularly if it goes into dispute, would be resolved in multiple years of litigation," he added.

No doubt, DEC sensed last night that the community won't back down from getting the best, most comprehensive clean-up of the canal and that it expects DEC to step up,  to stop providing New York City's Department of Environmental Protection with cover and to start providing this community with meaningful relief from Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO). 

*Later in the meeting, DEC's Gary Kline admitted "that you can put a bracket" around that number and that its nay " a range based on the size of the facility that you are going to build."

The CAG asked the DEC to provide a breakdown of that figure.

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Gowanus Canal Community Advisory Group To Meet With NY State DEC Representatives. Public Invited

The EPA Gowanus Canal Community Advisory Group will be meeting with representatives of New York State's Department Of Environmental Conservation on December 4th, to speak about the agency's role  as it relates to the Superfund clean-up as well as the issue of Combined Sewer Overflow that continue to discharge into the canal.
Representing the DEC will be James Tierney, Robert Schick, Venetia Lannon, and Gary Kline.

Below is the meeting announcement from the CAG

The public is invited to attend a meeting of the Gowanus Canal Community Advisory Group (CAG) with senior-level officials from the NY State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) on December 4 from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. at PS 32, 317 Hoyt Street, Brooklyn.
Your presence at this meeting will help demonstrate the community’s strong support for a comprehensive clean-up of the canal. The CAG will be asking NYSDEC officials pointed questions about the state’s role in the enforcement of Clean Water Act requirements to eliminate sewage overflows, whether and how the state is coordinating with EPA’s Superfund cleanup process, and other issues of vital importance to a proper clean-up of the canal and protection of public health.
NYSDEC is the only agency that has the right to review and provide comments to EPA on EPA’s Superfund clean-up plan prior to its release, which is expected by the end of 2012. The CAG encourages a strong public turnout at this meeting to show NYSDEC the community’s concern that the clean-up be done right. Questions and comments will be collected from members of the public at the meeting to be answered by NYSDEC as time permits, or to be submitted for later response.

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US Environmental Protection Agency Releases Hurricane Sandy Sampling Results For Gowanus Canal

After the Gowanus Canal, an Environmental Protection Agency Superfund Site, flooded the surrounding area during Hurricane Sandy exactly two weeks ago today, many residents and business owners expressed concern. Did the sludge left behind when the waters receded contain any of highly toxic compounds from the canal? Did they have to be concerned about the Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) that is dumped into the Gowanus during storm events?
The EPA came out to the community and took samples from two businesses on Douglass Street, located on the banks of the canal and near the flushing tunnel.
The results were just posted on EPA's web site:
Here is the statement:

US Environmental Protection Agency

Hurricane Sandy Sampling Results

On October 31, 2012, EPA took 4 samples in the Gowanus Canal area. Samples were taken from the ground floors of two buildings that had been flooded as well as directly from the canal. One of the buildings is located at the head of the canal, and the other near the 3rd street turning basin.

Samples of flood water from the ground floors of the two buildings were analyzed for bacteria and 139 different chemicals within the following categories: metals, volatile organic compounds, petroleum related compounds and semi-volatile organic compounds. Semi-volatile organic compound include polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons or PAHs, which are the primary contaminants in Gowanus Canal sediment.

Levels of bacteria were high. While this type of bacteria becomes inactive over time, these findings reinforce the need for people to protect themselves when cleaning up flood waters that contain sewage and therefore contain bacteria. Fact sheets detailing the precautions people should take when cleaning flood waters can be found at http://www.epa.gov/sandy

The remaining four categories of pollutants were compared to health based values of drinking water quality. Chemicals that were tested were below levels of concern or not detected. Low levels of gasoline and diesel derivatives were found, consistent with road run-off which often contains traces of fuel.

Levels of semi-volatile organic compounds were very low or not detected. These compounds include PAHs, which are a primary contaminant in the sediments at the bottom of the canal. The presence of some PAHs at low levels may also be related to spilled fuel and run off from asphalt.

Levels of most volatile organic compounds and metals were very low or not at levels that could be detected.

Levels of metals included some slight exceedances of drinking water standards. In the case of lead, its presence may be related to past lead usage in gasoline, typical to an urban environment.

Here are the complete results of the sampling.

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Gowanus Canal TASK Report: An Easy-To-Understand Summary Of Major EPA Technical Documents

 

Three page report prepared by Skeo

A few months back, the EPA Gowanus Canal Community Advisory Committee (CAG) asked the Federal agency to provide funds  for Technical Assistance Services for Communities (TASC.)  The CAG felt that the community would appreciate an easy-to-understand report on the reports issued by the EPA on the Gowanus Canal to date.  The report was prepared by Skeo Solutions.

Below is an introduction to the report from the CAG:

Attached is a new report (and summary) that explains, in layperson terms, the major EPA technical documents released to date for the Gowanus Canal Superfund site: the Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study(RI/FS). The report aims to help organizations, community groups, and individuals gain a better understanding of the RI/FS, the complexities of the site contamination, and the process that the EPA is taking to clean the canal.

The report gives an overview of the findings of the RI/FS and the Superfund process with a focus on: 1) the impacts of Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs) and how these could be addressed through the Superfund Cleanup; 2) how water movement affects contamination in the Canal; and 3) how ecological restoration of the canal could be part of site cleanup.
The Gowanus Canal CAG requested the assistance of a technical advisor through the EPA’s Technical Assistance Services for Communities (TASC) program to review and prepare this report. Our TASC advisors, Skeo Solutions, worked with the Water Quality and Technical Committee of the CAG on the drafting of the report with the goal of creating a document that will foster greater understanding and engagement in the Superfund cleanup process throughout the community.

Please share and distribute widely to organizations, community groups, and anyone else who might benefit from this report.
The 3-page report can be accessed and printed here
A full, more comprehensive report is available here

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Full Report On Tuesday Night's EPA Gowanus Canal Superfund CAG Meeting

Jeff Edelstein, CAG Facilitator

Christos Tsiamis, EPA Region 2 project manager for the Gowanus Canal  with Brian Carr, EPA Region 2 Legal Council

Christos Tsiamis

The Environmental Protection Agency's Gowanus Canal Superfund Community Advisory Group (CAG) held its general meeting at Mary Star Of The Sea housing on First Street last night.

Superfund progress report

Both Christos Tsiamis, EPA Region 2 project manager for the Gowanus Canal,  and Brian Carr, EPA Region 2 Legal Council, were in attendance and gave a Superfund progress report.

Tsiamis explained that the Remedial Investigation and the Feasibility study have been completed. Based on all the collected data and discussions with various parties, namely National Grid and New York City as well as members of the community,  Region 2 has prepared a plan for the clean-up of the polluted waterway. A prototype plan was submitted to EPA's National Review Board at the agency's headquarter in Washington.  "We are right now at the stage of putting together the Plan for presentation to the public and are hoping to put it out for comment to the community by the end of this year," Tsiamis stated.

The formal review process generally lasts about 30 days, but because of the size of the community and the anticipated number of comments, the period will most likely be extended.

At that point, Region 2 has to look at all the comments that have been submitted and consider them. After the plan has been refined, a final document called a Record of Decision will be prepared.

Tsiamis concluded: "We are right on schedule.

Polytechnic Institute of New York University Professor Maurizio Porfiri

Brooklyn Atlantis

Also on the agenda last night was a presentation of 'Brooklyn Atlantis', a project led by Polytechnic Institute of New York University Professors Maurizio Porfiri and Oded Nov. A team of graduate students in Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science has been working on a system of mobile instrumented buoys with wireless capabilities for data collection and environmental monitoring. As Professor Porfiri explained last night, the buoys would move about on the Gowanus Canal, powered by rechargeable batteries that use solar energy. Cameras mounted on the buoys will be taking photos above and below the water's surface.   Sensors will monitor water quality by checking temperature, dissolved oxygen levels, ph levels (and perhaps salinity and water flow.)   Photos and data will be downloaded to a website.

An important component of Brooklyn Atlantis is the participation of citizen scientists who will be able to access images on the computer, classify wildlife on photos as well as earn points for correctly identifying objects, access sensor data for different canal locations and compare results.

The project has been funded by the National Science Foundation. Professor Porfiri expects Brooklyn Atlantis to run simultaneously to the EPA clean-up of the canal.

More information about Brooklyn Atlantis can be found at www.brooklynatlantis.poly.edu

Leah Graziano of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

Chris Dorsoki of the NYS Department of Health

Public Health Assessment Of the Gowanus Superfund area

Chris Dorsoki of the New York State Department of Health and Leah Graziano of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) gave an overview of the role of their agencies and how they support the EPA and the Gowanus Canal Superfund site community.

Dorsoki and Graziano shared information about the Public Health Assessment that was prepared and the conclusions drawn from the Assessment.
Regarding the Gowanus Canal, it was found that swimming in the canal would harm people's health because of exposure to bacteria. Eating fish and crabs from the Gowanus was also a health hazard.

Dorsoki explained that a Public Health Assessment is not the same as a health study.  A few CAG members asked why such study has never been done in Gowanus, especially in light of the fact that the canal has been declared a Superfund.  Dorsoki said that a health study can take decades to complete.

After a brief discussion, Jim Vogel, representing NY State Senator Velmanette Montgomery, declared that the senator's office would formally request a study.

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