Over NYC mayor’s objections, EPA adds polluted Gowanus Canal to Superfund list
By APTuesday, March 2, 2010
EPA adds polluted NYC canal to Superfund list
NEW YORK — A New York City canal that was once so polluted locals called it The Lavender Lake has become the nation’s newest superfund site.
The Environmental Protection Agency announced Tuesday it had placed Brooklyn’s Gowanus (goh-WAH’-nuhs) Canal in the federal cleanup program. The agency made the designation over the objections of Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
The mayor had criticized the federal program as too slow. He also worried the Superfund label would scare away developers.
The EPA says the designation is “the best path to a cleanup.” It allows the government to go after polluters and force them to pay for the waterway’s restoration.
A Bloomberg spokesman says the administration is disappointed but committed to working with the EPA.
