Well the days are finally warm and sunny, so it’s time to get out there!  We have several great public tours on offer with our top-notch collaborators, highlighting all the important stuff:  history, ecology and working waterfront. Would you like to sponsor a ticket or entire tour so that NCA can offer more programs for free to the public?  We would love your support in this way! Click on the DONATE button on the left, or contact Kate Zidar for more info (kzidar@newtowncreekalliance.org).

WALKING TOURS
The following fabulous foot tours are led by Mitch Waxman, NCA Historian. Bring your camera, as the tour  leads you through incredible landscapes, and Mitch has all the angles worked out! Come prepared for rough terrain and possible heavy truck traffic. Bring water and sun protection, and wear closed-toe shoes. Click on each title below to get ticketed (20$ per person). Group rates are available; contact us at info@newtowncreekalliance.org.

Parks and Petroleum - Sunday, May 12, 2013
This tour explores the petroleum and waste transfer districts of the Newtown Creek watershed in North Brooklyn. Heavily industrialized, the area we will be walking through is the heart of the Greenpoint Oil Spill and home to scores of waste transfer stations and other heavy industries. We will be heading for the thrice damned Kosciuszko Bridge, which is scheduled for a demolition and replacement project which will be starting in 2013. Photographers, in particular, will find this an interesting walk through a little known and quite obscure section of New York City.

The Insalubrious Valley - Saturday, June 29, 2013
The currently undefended border of Brooklyn and Queens, and the place where the industrial revolution actually happened, provides a dramatic and picturesque setting for this exploration. We’ll visiting two movable bridges, the still standing remains of an early 19th century highway, and a forgotten tributary of the larger waterway. As we walk along the Newtown Creek and explore the “wrong side of the tracks” – you’ll hear tales of the early chemical industry, “Dead Animal and Night Soil Wharfs”, colonial era heretics and witches and the coming of the railroad. The tour concludes at the famed Clinton Diner in Maspeth- where scenes from the Martin Scorcese movie “Goodfellas” were shot. Lunch at Clinton Diner is included with the ticket.

13 Steps around Dutch Kills - Saturday, August 17, 2013
Join Newtown Creek Alliance Historian Mitch Waxman for an intense exploration of Newtown Creek’s Dutch Kills tributary. During a three hour tour, you’ll cover three miles of Brooklyn and Queens and see where the industrial revolution actually happened. In 13 steps, Mitch will show you the then and now of the infamous Dutch Kills tributary. It’s considered to be the central artery of industrial Long Island City and is ringed with enormous factory buildings, titan rail yards, and historic bridges.

BIRDING AND INTERTIDAL ZONE CANOE TOURS
Break out the binoculars! Did you know that there are nooks and crannies on Newtown Creek that harbor wildlife? Did you know that creeping along in a canoe is the best way to view the intertidal zone and view a heron unruffled? The following tours will be led by certified trip leaders with North Brooklyn Boat Club, in intimate groups of about ten paddlers:

May 26, 3pm SOLD OUT!
June 30, 12pm
July 28, 6pm
Aug 9, 3pm

All tours depart from and return to The North Brooklyn Boat Club at 49 Ash Street in Greenpoint. Your ticket price includes insurance, certified guides and all equipment! CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS!

WATER TAXI TOURS

July 20 with City of Water Day
MWA’s City of Water Day Festival is a free daylong celebration of “the world-class potential of the water that surrounds us and brings us together.”  Departing from Governors Island, NCA will lead a tour of Newtown Creek aboard a NYC Water Taxi during this event.  This boat fills up fast, so watch this space for ticketing info as it becomes available. Details TBA!

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the Newtown Creek Alliance  invite you to a special event to celebrate New York’s wildlife and Earth Week!

When: 1:00 PM on Friday, April 26th
Where: Maspeth Creek in Queens
49^th Street & Maspeth Avenue
MAP - http://goo.gl/maps/0bZXw

The event will include:

+  Announcement of the release of the New York Wildlife Viewing Guide;
+  Remarks about the benefits of Watchable Wildlife and the wildlife in and around the Newtown Creek area;
+  Release of Newtown Creek Alliance Bird Guide, created in collaboration with North Brooklyn Boat Club;
+  Announcement of the Summer 2013 Birdwatching Canoe Trip Season with NCA and North Brooklyn Boat Club;
+  Bird Watching on the Newtown Creek;

Outdoor recreation is a key tourism and economic driver for New York State and wildlife viewing is the fastest growing and most popular outdoor recreational activity.

DEC is releasing the New York Wildlife Viewing Guide as part of New York’s Watchable Wildlife initiative to promote wildlife watching and tourism at sites across New York State.

NYSDEC and NCA hope that you can join us for all or part of this special event.

Please RSVP to Thomas V. Panzone at 718 482 4953 or tvpanzon@gw.dec.state.ny.us

Often when we ask for improved access to Newtown Creek, we are met with the response, “Why do you want access to that?” 

© Bernie Ente

The polluted and industrial nature of Newtown Creek often limits the thinking and planning about what sorts of activities belong there.

© Bernie Ente

In the words of NYC’s own Comprehensive Waterfront Plan, the old one from 1992, we believe that the “historical concept of “public trust,” which establishes that certain waterfront benefits are held in trust for all the people, is fundamental …for public access and recreational use of the water’s edge.”

© Kate Zidar

On Newtown Creek, the waterway is our Main St., and therefore all of our boaters are the “eyes on the street”, our own form of natural surveillance.

© Kate Zidar

From the tugboat captains, we know when and where the bridges will open; from our canoe trip captains we get detailed reports on what lives in the intertidal zone.

© Bernie Ente

A fully active Newtown Creek, teaming with a diverse array of skilled boat handlers, is ultimately in the best interest of Newtown Creek’s economy and ecosystem.

© Mitch Waxman

So what happens on Newtown Creek during a rainstorm? The honest answer might gross you out.  In order to better understand water quality issues, the Newtown Creek Alliance installed weather stations on libraries throughout the Newtown Creek drainage area – or watershed – over the course of the past year. This “Weather in the Watershed” workshop will explore the weather data we are collecting from the roofs of public libraries throughout the Newtown Creek watershed, and learn what it tells us about conditions on the creek.

Join us March 19 at 4:30pm for a kickoff Weather in the Watershed program being held in support of World Water Day and the 2013 United Nations Year of International Water Cooperation at Sunnyside Library.

Are you interested in volunteering for Newtown Creek Alliance this year? We are seeking volunteers to support the Weather in the Watershed program! We will need help on programs throughout the watershed to interpret and analyze the weather data and monitor sewer overflows on rainy days! Reach out to info@newtowncreekalliance.org or better yet, come to this March 19^th event!

Weather in the Watershed is a program that has been made possible through funding from  NYCEF’s Newtown Creek Fund (Hudson River Foundation), and the Deutsche Bank Americas Foundation. This event is part of the Greening Libraries Initiative at Queens Library.

UPDATE: You can check out an audio recording of this session here, and follow along with a pdf of the presentation here.  Thanks Andrew Pavia and Ziwen Tu for getting us the files.

NCA’s Green Infrastructure Workgroup is hosting a focus group meeting for stakeholders in Sunnyside about stormwater runoff and Green Infrastructure. NCA is collaborating with Dr. Franco Montalto to analyze Green Infrastructure potential in a “subwatershed” area that drains to Dutch Kills. The study area (roughly bounded by Dutch Kills, LIE, New Calvary, Gpoint Ave, and 48th Ave) includes a part of the industrial business zone, some residential and commercial area, a section of the elevated LIE, and a small section of Calvary cemetery. We are seeking input from representatives and property owners in this area.

Dr. Montalto and his students from Drexel University have done an initial analysis to show us what data his model is capable of crunching.  Dr. Montalto and his students have created a tool for comparing the cost effectiveness of reducing runoff with different green infrastructure / low impact development technologies. The tool is called the LIDRA (Low Impact Development Rapid Assessment) model, and it is a powerful web-based planning tool that they built from scratch. NCA is very excited that one of their first applications of the tool will benefit the Newtown Creek area! We hope that this work will help guide public and private investment in Green infrastructure in the years to come.

Thursday, March 14, 10am
LaGuardia Community College
2nd floor of Shenker Hall
M201A – the Natural Science Department conference room
The best way there is to take the E building elevator to the 2nd floor - turn left to enter the M building, room is first door on the right.
Here’s a map!

RSVP to kzidar@newtowncreekalliance.org

From Lolita Jackson, Outreach Director for the Mayor’s Special Initiative for Rebuilding & Resiliency:

“The NYC Special Initiative for Rebuilding & Resiliency [SIRR] is continuing its outreach with a public workshop to introduce our mission to the broader public and engage with the communities most impacted by Sandy.

We consider you a critical stakeholder in this conversation, so we would like to ask you and your organization to help recruit members of your community. Please RSVP to the meeting and share the information below and attached with your community network, asking them to RSVP individually (we need an accurate count to determine logistics).

PLEASE NOTE: this invite is for a meeting about Williamsburg, Greenpoint, DUMBO and Long Island City and surrounding communities. There will also be a meeting about Red Hook, Gowanus and Sunset Park on March 7.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Special Initiative for Rebuilding and Resiliency (SIRR) addresses how we rebuild New York City to be more resilient in the wake of Hurricane Sandy but with a long-term focus.
We invite you to join us for a facilitated conversation about how to rebuild Williamsburg, Greenpoint, DUMBO, Long Island City and surrounding communities. We are looking for participants who are invested in this neighborhood now and for the next generation. There is also a meeting for Red Hook/Gowanus/Sunset Park on March 7.

SIRR Williamsburg/Greenpoint/DUMBO/LIC Public Workshop
March 14, 2013
Program begins at 7:00 pm
P.S. 132
320 Manhattan Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11211

We begin with a brief introduction of SIRR and will have break-out sessions to discuss priorities for rebuilding Northern Brooklyn and Long Island City to be more resilient in the face of future storms and long-term climate change.

RSVP by email: RSVPWaterFrontMarch14@nycsirr.org. Include the full name and email (if available) of each guest.

RSVP by phone:(212) 618-5745 – Leave the name of each guest and say “for March 14 Waterfront”.

“…the single most important piece of unfinished business that lies ahead of us in 2013: rebuilding the communities hit hardest by Hurricane Sandy – and creating a more resilient and sustainable city.” – Mayor Mike Bloomberg’s State of the City Address, February 14, 2013

NCA’s February meeting will highlight the wide array of local citizen and student scientists exploring all angles of the creek. The meeting will be structured as a showcase, with quick presentations on each topic, and materials for you to peruse in person. Come mingle with your local citizen scientists. Read on for the full line up.

NCA Spotlight on Citizen Science
February 25, 2013 at 6pm
LaGuardia Community College
E Building, Room E-242
Directions

Water Quality – Dr. Sarah Durand and  Dr. Holly Porter-Morgan will show student work from LaGCC  that “illustrates the reverberating impacts of CSO discharges on several water quality variables”. Also, they will bring one of the colossal plankton tows they use to strain algae et al. out of the creek. Caitlyn Nichols from the Interstate Environmental Commission will be on hand to recount how she spent last summer sampling at the CSO outfalls on Newtown Creek and lived to tell the tale. The North Brooklyn Boat Club did water quality monitoring last year In conjunction with the New York City Water Trails Association, and made a sweet mural to interpret the results.  If we are lucky, Leif Percifeld will bring his latest contraption for monitoring water quality or sewer activity.

Air Quality – Researchers and engineers from HabitatMap, New York University, and Carnegie Mellon University have partnered to pilot a community health study examining the relationship between air pollution and human health using wearable sensors and smartphones. The study will use the AirCasting platform to examine how exposure to carbon monoxide and fine particulate matter impact heart rate variability and blood oxygen levels. They are seeking five volunteers to participate in the pilot health study. In order to be eligible, volunteers must live or work within one mile of Newtown Creek and be physically active in the neighborhood. Interested parties or anyone who would like to learn more should contact Michael Heimbinder, Executive Director of HabitatMap and Chair of the Newtown Creek Alliance, at info@habitatmap.org. This work is supported by a “My Air, My Health” Challenge Grant from the US Environmental Protection Agency, National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences, and the US Department of Health and Human Services.

Flora and Fauna – North Brooklyn Boat Club and NCA have been collaborating on documenting the existing critters along Newtown Creek, and we are ready to share some of these observations.  We will show results of survey work in the intertidal zone as well as a growing bird list that we developed over the course of the last year. These observations will springboard into designing the edge to support more life and survive a bump from a barge here and there.

Weather Monitoring – In order to better understand how and when the sewers overflow, NCA is collaborating with the S.W.I.M. Coalition,  Queens and Brooklyn Public Libraries and Leif Percifeld to install and monitor weather stations throughout the Newtown Creek watershed. The project got started with support from the Hudson River Foundation’s Newtown Creek Fund, and our work has been extended through the Deutsche Bank Americas Foundation. We have added a gauge to our website that indicates if there has been enough rain to potentially cause combined sewer overflows…we are looking for volunteers to help calibrate the system and work with the data!

Bioremediation – Out of NCA’s Bioremediation Workgroup, we have Smiling Hogshead Ranch and The Fortune Society teaming up to offer a bioremediation job force program this year on the Ranch site, two blocks away from both the Newtown Creek and the elevated Long Island Expressway. Soil tests will likely take place later this winter with analysis and planting in spring. The multi-year plan is to train multiple groups in all stages of bioremediation planning and implementation.

Post Sandy Testing – NCA is aggregating a one-stop shop for post-Sandy soil and water sampling that we conducted along with results from private companies, EPA, OSHA and more. This is taking the form of an online  redux of all the sampling activity that occurred, and potentially a mapping tool.

Community Meeting 2 of the Greenpoint Environmental Benefit Projects Program is scheduled for February 11, 2013.  Community Meeting 2 has been designed with an open house format.  You may drop in anytime between 5:00 and 8:00.

From the office of Attorney General Schneiderman: “The State of New York is collaborating with the residents of Greenpoint, Brooklyn in investing $19,500,000, obtained by the State of New York in a settlement with ExxonMobil, in ‘Environmental Benefit Projects’ (EBPs) in the community. These EBPs will be designed to provide significant environmental improvements in Greenpoint and address environmental areas of concern for the community, such as water quality, groundwater, open space, reduction of toxic pollution, and air quality.” Come to an open house on Monday Feb 11 to get an update on the Program’s progress, meet the Program’s General Administrator, and provide input on the types of environmental projects you want to see the Program fund in your community! Read more here.

NCA hats are now available! Our fashionable hat is “one size fits most”, and was locally printed with the NCA logo. Put one on, and you are suddenly inspired to tell all your friends about combined sewer overflow and point out the architectural elements of the sewage treatment plant.

Your $20.00 donation not only gets you quality headwear, it also provides important support for our programs and general operations. A portion of the donation will be tax-deductible.

ORDER HERE if you would like to pickup your hat(s) yourself in Greenpoint:

ORDER HERE if you would like to have your hat(s) shipped to you:

During the peak of the storm, Newtown Creek flooded throughout Zones A, B and C, and some waterfront areas experienced several feet of water. Luckily, waters receded quickly for the most part, but cleanup for many will be challenging, and the industrial zone is dealing with damage to electrical systems and other equipment.  Check out our photos from the storm, and our recap of Sandy’s visit and lasting impacts.

Join Congresswomen Velázquez  and Maloney, Assemblyman Lentol, and Councilmembers Levin and Reyna…along with NCA and the Superfund CAG, for a review of what when right and what went wrong on Newtown Creek during Superstorm Sandy.

Post-Sandy Meeting with US EPA
Monday, December 17, 2012 at 6:30 pm
Newtown Creek WPCP Visitor Center
329 Greenpoint Avenue
Greenpoint, Brooklyn NY, 11222
(Enter at the intersection of Greenpoint Avenue and Humboldt Street.)

Preliminary Agenda:
+ Welcome from Congress members and elected officials
+ US EPA on post-Sandy response
+ NCA presentation of independent sampling and impacts
+ Open forum on information gaps and future needs

Many agency representatives will be present to provide attendees with information. We expect attendance by FEMA, OSHA, NYS DEC, and NYC DOHMH and more. In addition, NYC Community Affairs Commissioner Nazli Parvizi will be on hand to discuss the Rapid Repair Program for any property owner that was affected by Sandy.