Attendees
Joan Salome-Rodriguez (Facilitator), Erica Eliason, Katia Kelly, Louis Kleinman, Margaret Maugenest, Susan Yung, Aaron Kaufman (Gowanus Remediation Team)
1: Joan reported that US Geological Survey is doing a survey on behalf of the NYC Department of Environmental Protection – Michael Como responded. The USGS is looking at Gowanus but, disappointingly, is still only looking at the Federal Monitoring Well on Sterling Place and 6th Avenue. We need them to come down to at least Nevins between Sackett and Union there may be City water caps there). Joan will continue to follow up.
2: Erica will email the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation about its water quality rules. Nothing yet.
3. We need to keep checking for a Notice of Proposed Rule Making with the New York State Department of State (NYSDOS), by March 31, 2025. It is DEC’s goal to file a Notice of Adoption with the NYSDOS by September 30, 2025. This rulemaking(s) may require a Regulatory Flexibility Analysis for Small Businesses and Local Governments. Both Erica and I checked the website and did not see anything that appeared to be relevant to this. We will follow.
4. Follow ups for our many questions about the Whole Foods site:
Victoria Sacks (EPA Remedial Project Manager) emailed answers to our follow-up questions. Only those for which we have yet to get full answers are listed here with our new questions. Question 1 ultimately required we follow up with DEC.
Question 1: Was Whole Foods’ footprint remediated when it was built?
- Previous answer: The Whole Foods property is in NYSDEC’s Brownfield Cleanup Program and was remediated in approximately 2013. EPA was satisfied with the remedy at that time. Please refer to the NYSDEC Brownfield Cleanup Program website for further details.
Initial follow-up to question #1:
Although the answer to this question was “yes”, the information below and your answer to #3 below is not reassuring (see below, question 3 is included for your reference).
It appears that the area of the parking lot that was owned by The Crushers was not entered under the Brownfields Program. Attached is the easement document the NYSDEC placed on the property following the BCP work. It covers the lots 16-1 on block 978, but not lots 23, 30, or 32. There is no evidence that Lots 23, 30, 32 were ever in the DEC Brownfield Cleanup Program.
As far as our committee members recall, the cleanup work on Lots 1-16 was for the removal of septic tanks on the site. Was testing done for other contaminants? If so, which ones? What were the results? Was the site remediated for such contaminants?
Thus, our question regarding recontamination stands.
EPA Response: EPA reviewed the information at the time and had no issue with those properties. Not every parcel has sufficient contamination to qualify for the brownfields program. Please seek additional information from DEC.
New Committee follow-up questions: We will follow with DEC regarding whether the un-remediated area of the parking lot was tested and also ask DEC if there are currently any nearby monitoring wells.
Questions 6, 7 & 8 all had to do with the turning basin designs that were close to complete.
EPA Response: EPA is happy to walk through the remedial design for RTA2 when it has been finalized. We are in communication with the Trust as they update a few last points that we requested be included in the design. I anticipate this will happen in the next few months as the design is very close to completion. EPA also will plan to share preliminary designs for Turning Basin 1 at that time.
New Committee follow-up question: When do you expect those designs to be ready to share?
Also, is there a turning basin at 7th Street?
Question 10: Can we expect mounding of the water from the underground streams?
- Previous answer: Based on groundwater modeling efforts documented in the RTA2 100% Design Appendix B18 calculation package, the forecasted mounding near Whole Foods ranges from less than 0.5 foot to 1.5 feet. Groundwater mounding in the vicinity of TB1 will be evaluated as part of the TB1 design effort.
Committee follow up to Question 10: A number of questions arise from the question and answer above.
Is the mounding a rise in groundwater level of .5′ to 1.5′? If so, where does that put the groundwater level at and around the Whole Foods area and the other side of that turning basin? Under what circumstances is the mounding happening? Is the mounding due to underground streams?
We heard from Park Slope residents from as far up the slope as 8th Avenue and at the Van Alen Institute Flood Solutions Fair that they are experiencing basement flooding that they never experienced before – for some, the water is coming through their basement walls.
Has a new hydrology/groundwater study been done that takes the underground streams and their outflows extending up into Park Slope and Carroll Gardens into account?
EPA Response: Yes, “mounding” is the delta – or change – in groundwater elevation. There is an increase in the vicinity of Whole Foods of 0.5 feet to 1.5 feet above the normal groundwater elevation. The groundwater mounding is highly localized right at the canal; we wouldn’t expect mounding anywhere near 8th Ave from the bulkhead work. The cap is not solid – in fact, it is designed to allow for groundwater to go through it, trapping the NAPL before it enters the canal. A groundwater modeling study in the area surrounding the canal was conducted as part of the RTA2 design. This is how we estimated that mounding in the vicinity of WF is 0.5 – 1.5 feet.
New Committee follow-up question: Can you share this study with the CAG at a General Meeting? Was the study broader than just the Whole Foods area? Can EPA present the entire study with explanation to the CAG?
_____________________________________________________________________________________
5. Joan went over an item from the March meeting regarding a 2/4/2025 groundwater survey report to DEC by a consultant, HRP, that had concerning information in it. The survey was done off-site at a Brownfield project at 473 President Street (includes 469 President Street (the E-Waste parcel), and 514 Union Street). The purpose was to identify impacts of off-site soil vapor and groundwater based on chlorinated VOCs at the President Street sites. The investigation was performed from October 2022 to June 2024. Although the sites are 12 feet above sea level, groundwater elevations range from .66′ to 2.85’ flowing W-NW towards intersection of Union and Nevins and the Canal with minor fluctuations in levels based on tides. The elevations were mapped between January 2023 and June 2024 (see page 2, paragraph 3). Though the soil samplings were not alarming, the groundwater samplings were (see pages 5-6).
I would very much like to know where this groundwater is going now that the 70’ metal bulkheads are in the Canal. Is it mounding? Is it traveling under the Canal to the west side? Is it traveling into the Canal through permitted outfalls?
Katia will craft a broad email to EPA and DEC using the above as an example to ask these questions.
6. Joan to email Celeste to ask Gary whether the plants and aquatic life in and around the Canal can be tested for toxins? Done.
7. What did Eymund find out about rain barrels? Joan emailed him.
8. Discussed flood gates and whether the Army Corps of Engineers is still working on ours. Are they keeping the pumping station in mind? Do they even have funding anymore? We should FOIA them.