DEP Completes Sewer Project for Two Queens Communities

Meadowmere, Warnerville Residents Can Now Connect to City Sewer System


Environmental Protection Commissioner Cas Holloway today announced the completion of a project that will allow homeowners in the Meadowmere and Warnerville sections of southeast Queens, along Jamaica Bay, to connect to the City's sewer system. The Department of Environmental Protection designed and constructed new sewers and a new pumping station at a cost of $37.5 million.

"Having new sewers and a new pumping station provides a critical service to the Meadowmere and Warnerville communities, which have gone too long without it," said Commissioner Holloway. "Wastewater from these communities will now be directed to the Jamaica Wastewater Treatment Plant and not into Jamaica Bay or into septic systems that too often fail; this investment is critical to the public health of all New Yorkers and will improve water quality in Hook Creek and Jamaica Bay."

"I am truly elated that we are moving forward with this vital project that will ensure the people of Warnerville and Meadowmere will be able to connect directly to the city's sewer system," said Council Member James Sanders Jr. "This $37.5 million shows what the community can accomplish when we work together. I thank the Department of Environmental Protection for their hard work and look forward to continuing to work with them in the 31st district."

This project is an example of the City's commitment to improving water quality in Jamaica Bay by expanding sewer infrastructure. The communities of Warnerville and Meadowmere, until recently, did not have sewers or a means of conveying sewage to the nearest wastewater treatment plant. Some homes had failing septic systems and some homes discharged sewage directly into Jamaica Bay. Flow from new sewers will be pumped by the Warnerville and Meadowmere Pumping Station to the Jamaica Wastewater Treatment Plant. DEP has been reaching out to homeowners since August to explain that they are required to hire a plumber to connect their homes to the sewer, and will work with them to hook them up to the system.

DEP manages the City's water supply, providing more than 1 billion gallons of water each day to more than 9 million residents, including 8 million in New York City. New York City's water is delivered from a watershed that extends more than 125 miles from the City, and comprises 19 reservoirs, and three controlled lakes. Approximately 7,000 miles of water mains, tunnels and aqueducts bring water to homes and businesses throughout the five boroughs, and 7,400 miles of sewer lines take wastewater to 14 in-City treatment plants.

DEP, Aveda to Promote NYC Tap Water During Fashion Week

"NYC Water on the Go" Stations in Manhattan Will Help Reduce Use of Plastic Water Bottles

Environmental Protection Commissioner Cas Holloway was joined by Aveda's Creative Director Antoinette Beenders today to announce a partnership to make New York City tap water (NYC Water) available for free at Manhattan locations throughout Fashion Week. New Yorkers and visitors to the City will be able fill their own reusable bottles with NYC Water from one of six "NYC Water on the Go" stations around the City. The goal of the initiative is to raise awareness about the waste that plastic bottles generate, and engage the fashion community to eliminate it.

"New York City tap water is among the highest quality and best tasting in the world," said Commissioner Holloway. "We are thrilled to work with Aveda, an environmental leader, to remind people that there is a great-tasting alternative to bottled water and the waste it generates — and it comes right out of the tap."

"Aveda is an activist brand at heart, so we are thrilled to partner with the New York City Department of Environmental Protection in being a force of change in helping to raise awareness of water issues," said Chuck Bennett, vice president of Aveda Earth and Community Care.

Working collaboratively to help reduce Fashion Week's environmental footprint, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) will set up "NYC Water on the Go" stations promoting NYC Water as an environmentally friendly alternative to bottled water. The stations will be installed at the following locations:

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SoHo (Broadway and Prince Street) – In front of Dean & Deluca
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Union Square (15th Street) – In front of Staples
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Chelsea (19th Street 5th Avenue) – In front of Aveda Store
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Herald Square (6th Avenue and 36th Street) – In front of Manhattan Mall
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Times Square (Broadway and 47th Street) – In front of Starbucks
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Rockefeller Center (5th Avenue and 49th Street)

View an online map of these NYC Water locations.

View a slideshow of pictures from the event.

DEP manages the City’s water supply, providing more than 1 billion gallons of water each day to more than 9 million residents, including 8 million in New York City. New York City’s water is delivered from a watershed that comprises 19 reservoirs, and three controlled lakes. Approximately 7,000 miles of water mains, tunnels and aqueducts bring water to homes and businesses, and 7,400 miles of sewer lines take wastewater to 14 in-City treatment plants.

EPA Provides Money to Help Find More Answers for Paterson, NJ Community

(New York, N.Y.) Advancing its work protecting human health and addressing concerns of vulnerable communities, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced $158,000 in new funding for the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) to conduct additional air monitoring in Paterson (Passaic County), N.J. after an earlier EPA funded study showed elevated levels of 8 air toxics in the local environment. The information collected will help environmental officials better address public exposure to, and risk from, hazardous air pollutants.

Under an earlier Urban Community Air Toxics Monitoring Project, funded with $495,000 of EPA grant money, the NJDEP tracked air toxics coming from industrial, commercial and mobile sources in the highly industrialized urban community of Paterson, the state’s third most populous city. Air toxics, also called hazardous air pollutants, are pollutants that are known or suspected to cause cancer or other serious health effects or adverse environmental impacts. Paterson has a high population density and an elevated level of asthma in children living in the area.

“We are glad to do our part to address the health concerns of the Paterson community and ensure that we reduce pollution in highly vulnerable areas,” said Judith Enck, EPA Regional Administrator. “Reducing exposure to such toxins is a part of EPA’s mission. The further air monitoring that we are funding will help NJDEP identify and eliminate significant emissions of air toxics that can threaten the health of the community. Air monitoring is an effective tool which helps us assess air quality and protect people’s health.”

Out of the 132 air toxics that were measured during the Urban Community Air Toxics Monitoring Project, p-dichlorobenzene concentrations were significantly elevated at one of the monitoring locations in Paterson compared to the other monitoring locations in Paterson and around the state. Seven other air toxics were also elevated at all three sites in Paterson. The annual average of these eight air toxics (benzene, ethyl benzene, 1,3-butadiene, carbon tetrachloride, chloroform, chloromethane, tetrachloroethylene, and p-dichlorobenzene) indicate some health concerns based on the state’s health guidance levels.

Upon conclusion of the new air monitoring, the data will be analyzed by the state and NJDEP will share its results with the community.

To learn more about EPA’s efforts to reduce air pollution in NJ, visit: http://www.epa.gov/region02/air.

EPA Announces Agreement with the City of New York On PCBs in School Caulk

(New York, N.Y.) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced an agreement with the City of New York to address the risks posed by PCBs in caulk found in some city schools. The agreement is intended to result in a city-wide approach to assessing and reducing potential exposures to PCBs in caulk in schools.

“The work that the City of New York has agreed to do will go a long way toward helping us better understand the potential risks posed by PCBs in caulk, and our work to reduce the exposure of school children, teachers and others who work in New York City public schools,” said Judith Enck, EPA Regional Administrator. “New York City’s 1,600 public schools make it the largest school system in the nation, and we believe that the program outlined in this agreement, along with general EPA guidance on managing the issue, will serve as a model for school systems across the country.”

The agreement announced today requires the city to conduct a study in five schools to determine the most effective strategies for assessing and reducing potential exposures to PCBs in caulk. The city will then produce a proposed plan for any cleanups needed in the five schools and use this information to develop a recommended city-wide approach. EPA is also requiring the city to develop and submit for approval best management practices for reducing exposure to PCBs in caulk in school buildings. These may include cleaning the schools, improving ventilation, and addressing deteriorating caulk.

Although Congress banned the manufacture and most uses of PCBs in 1976 and they were phased out in 1978, there is evidence that many buildings across the country constructed or renovated from 1950 to 1978 may have PCBs at high levels in the caulk around windows and door frames, between masonry columns and in other masonry building materials. Exposure to these PCBs may occur as a result of their release from the caulk into the air, dust, surrounding surfaces and soil, and through direct contact. In September 2009, EPA provided new guidance to communities and announced additional research to address PCBs that may be found in the caulk in many older buildings, including schools. Today’s agreement complements EPA’s national efforts by helping building owners and managers facing serious PCB problems develop practical approaches to reduce exposures and prioritize the removal of PCB caulk.

The legally binding agreement announced today settles potential violations of the Toxic Substances Control Act by the city for having caulk that contains PCBs above allowable levels in some schools. As part of the study of the five yet to be determined schools, the city will sample extensively in them, and will ensure that any PCB waste is properly removed. Once the study is concluded the city will work with EPA to develop and implement a plan to identify, prioritize, and address the presence of PCBs within the New York City school system. In addition, the agreement calls for the development of a citizens’ participation plan to ensure that school administrators, parents, teachers, students, and members of the public are kept fully informed throughout the process.

PCBs are man-made chemicals that persist in the environment and were widely used in construction materials and electrical products prior to 1978. PCBs can affect the immune, reproductive, nervous and endocrine systems and are potentially cancer-causing if they build up in the body over long periods of time. The greatest risks from PCBs involve sustained long-term exposure to high levels of PCBs.

EPA is currently conducting research to better understand the relationship between PCBs in caulk and PCB concentrations in caulk, air and dust. The Agency is doing research to determine the sources and levels of PCBs in buildings in the U.S. and to evaluate different strategies to reduce exposures.

The agreement and more information can be found at http://www.epa.gov/region2. To learn more about PCBs in caulk go to http://www.epa.gov/pcbsincaulk.

Anyone seeking technical guidance should contact the EPA at: 1-888-835-5372.

Vermont Power Plant Continues to Leak Radiation

By MATTHEW L. WALD

Technicians seeking the source of a leak of radioactive tritium at the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant have found concentrations in groundwater there that were three times higher than what was discovered last week, a plant spokesman said Monday.

Tritium was measured at 70,500 picocuries per liter, which the spokesman, Rob Williams, characterized as a low level. The highest level discovered so far “does not present a risk to public health or safety whatsoever,” he said in a statement.

But it does put Vermont Yankee over the threshold at which it is obligated to make a report to federal regulators within 30 days, and say what it will do about the problem. The limit, 30,000 picocuries, was crossed on Sunday.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has already been at the site to study the problem, and Vermont Yankee is well into an attempt to find the leak and map the pollution.

The Environmental Protection Agency standard for the allowable level of tritium in drinking water is 20,000 picocuries per liter, lower than the N.R.C. reporting threshold. But so far no contamination has been found in drinking water sources, plant officials and the Vermont health department said.

The new, higher level of 70,500 picocuries per liter of radioactive tritium was measured in a monitoring well, one of six that the owner, Entergy, is drilling to try to find the problem.

At a new well, the tritium concentration was 1,840 picocuries.

Vermont Yankee is seeking a 20-year extension of its operating license, which expires in 2012, from the regulatory commission. Renewal is also subject to state approval.

Last week, Gov. Jim Douglas said that recent events had cast “dark clouds of doubt” over the plant, and recommended that the Legislature delay a decision.

NYS to Close One of NYC's Dirtiest Power Plants

(AP) One of New York City's dirtiest power plants is closing this weekend.

New York State Power Authority officials confirmed Friday that The Charles Poletti Power Project in Queens will close at 11:59 p.m. Sunday.

The Astoria plant was named one of the city's worst polluters in a 2002 report by the Environmental Protection Agency. The generating station was built in the mid-1970's and could burn either oil or natural gas.

Queens City Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. calls the closing a breath of fresh air. Vallone and an environmental group won a 2002 lawsuit against the power authority, which led to the plant closing this weekend.

A replacement plant was built in 2005 to provide electricity to city agencies, subways and metro-area commuter trains.

‘Princess and Frog’ items recalled for cadmium Regulators cited toxic metal in pendants sold exclusively at Walmart

AP

Federal consumer safety regulators on Friday announced the recall of “The Princess and The Frog” pendants sold at Walmart stores because of high levels of the toxic metal cadmium, an unprecedented action that reflects concerns of an emerging threat in children’s jewelry.

The recall affects two products, about 55,000 items in total, sold exclusively by the world’s biggest retailer for $5 each. The action was taken voluntarily by Rhode Island-based jewelry company FAF Inc., which did not respond to requests for comment.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, which disclosed the recall, had been testing for cadmium in children’s metal jewelry for several weeks in response to an Associated Press investigation that reported high levels of the known carcinogen in the Disney movie-themed pendants and other children’s metal jewelry importThe Walt Disney Co. released a letter Friday it sent its vendors and licensees that sets a zero-tolerance policy for cadmium in any children’s jewelry bearing its brand. That is far stricter than federal regulations, which not only don’t require testing for cadmium in children’s jewelry but also set no upper limit for how much a product can contain.

Disney is now requiring that all products be tested for cadmium, and that a detection means production and distribution of the product should be stopped.

“Any detectable levels of cadmium will be deemed a product failure,” wrote Manuel G. Grace, Disney Co.’s senior vice president for product integrity.

In reaction to the AP’s reporting earlier this month, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. had pulled three items from its shelves, including the two recalled Friday — a crown pendant with UPC number 72783367144 and a frog pendant with UPC number 72783367147.

The items had been on sale at Walmart stores since November, in conjunction with release of the animated movie. Consumers can return the two recalled items to any Walmart store for a refund or replacement product.

On Friday, Wal-Mart said in a statement that it continues to actively participate in the CPSC investigation, and pointed out that it had taken “swift action” when it removed the cited items on Jan. 11.

“The items are currently being tested to see how we can responsibly manage and destroy them, and they will not be offered for sale anywhere,” the company said.

Two days after Wal-Mart pulled the items, the CPSC’s chairman advised parents to throw away all pieces of inexpensive metal jewelry, noting that children who chew, suck on or swallow a bracelet charm or necklace may be endangering their health because cadmium or lead could leach out of the item and into the body. Cadmium that is ingested accumulates for years, potentially causing serious harm to the kidneys and bones. Recent research also suggests it can harm brain development in children.

Friday’s recall marks the first time any consumer product has been recalled in the United States because of cadmium. To date, lead had been the focus — findings of high levels in jewelry and painted toys prompted a wave of recalls starting several years ago.

The CPSC said in a statement that there have been no reports of cadmium poisonings associated with the pendants but that its investigation into other pieces of jewelry “remains open and active.”

The Fashion Jewelry Trade Association, which includes FAF among its members, released a statement that emphasized the industry’s concern for safety but also suggested cadmium contamination is not widespread.

“We are confident in the safety of our members’ products,” said Michael Gale, executive director of the association. “Based on our members’ own data, cadmium is not widely used as a substitute for lead in children’s jewelry products.”

As part of the AP’s original investigation, lab tests conducted on 103 pieces of low-priced children’s jewelry found 12 items with cadmium content above 10 percent of the total weight. One item consisted of 91 percent cadmium by weight.

Pendants from four “The Princess and The Frog” necklaces ranged between 25 and 35 percent cadmium, according to the testing.

Disney said in a statement at the time that test results provided by FAF showed the item complied with all applicable safety standards. But in the case of cadmium, unlike lead, there have been no specific levels that would automatically trigger health risks to children or a push for a recall.

As part of its investigation, the CPSC bought pieces of the jewelry cited in the AP reports, tested them in the agency’s lab and found high levels as well. Based on the Federal Hazardous Substances Act, agency staff determined that the items posed a health risk to children, according to agency spokesman Scott Wolfson. The agency then approached FAF, which cooperated with the investigation and agreed to the recall. ed from China.