new york city environmental justice alliance · department of city planning march 2012 source: nyc...

www.NYC-EJA.org

www.NYC-EJA.org

New York City Environmental Justice Alliance

New York City

Environmental

Justice Alliance

www.nyc-eja.org

[email protected]

2012

NYC-EJA Waterfront Justice Project

Agenda

• Introduction . Project background . Waterfront Justice Project

• Research: . What are the threats?

. Who is affected?

• Advocacy: . Why is this relevant?

. NYC-EJA’s agenda

• Discussion

www.NYC-EJA.org

Project background

Project background

Waterfront

Revitalization Program

(WRP)

• Framework for evaluating

consistency of discretionary

actions in the Coastal Zone.

• SMIAs were determined to be

well suited for maritime and

industrial development because

existing conditions at the time

illustrated that.

Proposed Revisions for Public Review

Pursuant for Section 197-a of the City Charter

Department of City Planning

March 2012

Source: NYC Department of City Planning, 2011 / 2012

Waterfront Justice Project


Significant Maritime and Industrial Areas (SMIAs): 4,067 acres


Assess facilities that

use, transport, or

store hazardous or

toxic substances to:

Identify community

vulnerability

in/around Significant

Maritime and

Industrial Areas

under severe

weather

Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans BP Oil Spill, Gulf of Mexico

Earthquake/Tsunami, Japan Tornado, Missouri

Class 2 hazardous

waste sites that

are significant

threat to public

health; action

required

Hazardous

substances: . Polychlorinated

Biphenyls (PCB)

. Coal Tar

. Arsenic

. Trichloroethylene

. Fluorene

. Tetrachloroethylene

(PCE)

. Chromium

1. NYS-DEC Superfund Sites (Class 2)

What are the threats?

Facilities storing

hazardous

substances, or

capacity to store

400k gallons of

oil

Hazardous

substances: . Naphthalene

. Benzene

. Copper Cyanide

. Mercury

. Methyl Hydrazine

. Asbestos

. Arsenic Oxide

. Phosphorus

Trichloride

2. NYS-DEC Active Chemical Bulk /Major Oil Storage Facilities


Facilities

reporting toxic

chemicals in the

Toxics Release

Inventory

Hazardous

substances: . Trimethylbenzene

. Dioxin

. N-Hexane

. Naphthalene

. Methyl Ethyl Ketone

. Acetone

. Sodium Hydroxide

3. US-EPA Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act



NAICS Industry Sectors Records in SMIAs &

Half-Mile Buffers

Chemical manufacturing 35

Fabricated metal product manufacturing 35

Primary metal manufacturing 14

Electrical equipment, appliance, and component manufacturing 11

Nondurable goods merchant wholesalers:

Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals & Other Chemical and Allied

Products Merchant Wholesalers 9

Utilities 5

Top TRI reporters by industry sector within half a

mile buffer to the SMIAs:


TRI substances reported in Top 5 NAICS industry

sectors plus utilities:

Substance Priority

Chemical PBT

OSHA

Carcinogen HAPs

Metals and

Metal

Compounds

Polycyclic Aromatic

Compounds

Benzo (G,H,I)

Perylene

Dioxin & Dioxin-like

Compounds

Naphthalene

Lead & Lead

Compounds

Who is affected?

Why is this relevant?

M3 Heavy Manufacturing Districts

(Low Performance)

“…designed to accommodate the essential heavy industrial uses

which involve more objectionable influences and hazards….

Use Group 18 (allowed in M3 Zones) consists

primarily of industrial uses which:

“involve considerable danger of fire, explosion or other hazards to

public health or safety, or, cannot be designed without appreciable

expense to conform to high performance standards with respect to the

emission of objectionable influences”



A. Manufacturing uses

Chemicals, including acetylene, aniline dyes,

ammonia, carbide, caustic soda, cellulose,

chlorine, carbon black or bone black, cleaning

or polishing preparations, creosote,

exterminating agents, hydrogen or oxygen,

industrial alcohol, potash, plastic materials or

synthetic resins, rayon yarns, or hydrochloric,

picric, or sulphuric acids or derivatives

Cement and Asphalt or asphalt products

Incineration or reduction of garbage, offal or

dead animals

Paint, varnishes or turpentine

Radioactive waste disposal services involving

the handling or storage of radioactive waste

B. Storage or miscellaneous uses, open or

enclosed

Coal or gas storage

Dumps, marine transfer stations for garbage or

slag piles

Electric power or steam generating plants

Explosives storage, when not prohibited by

other ordinances

Petroleum or petroleum products, storage or

handling

Junk or salvage yards, including auto wrecking

or similar establishments, provided that such

yard is completely enclosed on all sides by a

solid opaque fence or wall

Examples of Use Group 18 Uses (as-of-right):

Performance Standards NYC

DCP

NYC

DEP

NYC

OEC

NYC

DOB

NYC

FD

NYC

OER

NYS

DOL

Noise

Vibration

Smoke, dust, particulate matter

Odorous matter

Toxic, noxious matter

Radiation hazards

Fire & explosive hazards

Humidity, heat & glare

Overlapping and un-coordinated enforcement of

zoning performance standards:



Challenges for citywide

resiliency and pollution

prevention strategy

• Zoning regulation resulted in

clustering of noxious uses

• Performance standards are

uncoordinated, very low and out of

date

• Planning framework didn’t

account for climate change

impacts, and release of hazardous

substances Source: Timothy Vogel, “Gowanus 48” February 20, 2006

Creative Commons Attribution via Flickr

NYC-EJA’s agenda

Policy recommendations

Source: Timothy Vogel, “Gowanus Canoe 02” September 30, 2007


• Mandate safe & responsible use of

hazardous materials and toxic chemicals

• Use comprehensive approach to climate

change impacts & coastal vulnerability

• Limit non-water-dependent uses

• Support local jobs via financial &

technical assistance

• Increase public access to the waterfront

• Protect and restore wetlands

• Advocate for coordinated & climate

resilient performance standards

• Streamline performance standards language;

• Coordinate performance standards;

• Design benchmarking mechanisms to

establish good, better and best practices to

reduce the vulnerability of industrial

waterfront areas to climate change impacts;

• Create incentive-based pilot program for

performance enhancement, focusing on the

provision of technical and financial

assistance to local industrial business; and

• Further incorporate TRI and CRTK tools in

NYC-EJA’s work -- which is applicable to

other waterfront communities of color across

the country Source: Timothy Vogel, “Gowanus 38” February 20, 2006


NYC-EJA’s agenda

Support implementation

www.NYC-EJA.org

www.NYC-EJA.org

New York City Environmental Justice Alliance

new york city environmental justice alliance · department of city planning march 2012 source: nyc...

Documents