Contractors working for the Environmental Protection Agency today began the process of removing debris from the Gowanus Canal’s 4th Street Turning Basin, a necessary first step to facilitate the dredging of toxic materials from the canal bed. The work being performed in the 4th Street Basin, a pilot project that will eventually be replicated throughout the canal, is expected to take several weeks.
EPA Community Involvement Coordinator Natalie Loney briefs reporters on the start of debris removal from the Gowanus Canal’s 4th Street Turning Basin.
The work is being staged from two large barges, which are supporting two excavators. Sonar scans have revealed 36 large objects in the 4th Street Basin, including two boats, a tree, and several pilings. Dredging is expected to begin in the basin in 2017.
Click here for a fact sheet with more information on the debris-removal pilot project.