Brooklyn Paper — By Kirstyn Brendlen | Posted on September 20, 2024
A city-owned concrete facility is producing dust and noise in the Columbia Waterfront District, and local leaders say something needs to be done.
Earlier this year, the Department of Transportation moved its concrete recycling facility from the South Brooklyn Army Terminal to a lot near the piers on Columbia Street. The move is temporary — necessitated by the construction of offshore wind infrastructure at the terminal — but residents took notice almost immediately.
Council Member Shahana Hanif, who represents the area, said constituents have been coming to her office with complaints since the facility opened in February, but things escalated as the weather got warmer.
One of the first problems were the trucks driving in and out of the facility. Residents said they were loud and clogging up local streets — but that was addressed fairly quickly, Hanif said, once brought to DOT.
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In the short term, concrete dust can cause irritation to the eyes, skin and respiratory system, according to the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Long-term exposure can cause more serious conditions, including silicosis, caused by tiny silica particles found in concrete dust.
Hanif, her counterparts in the state legislature, state Sen. Andrew Gounardes and Assembly Member Jo Anne Simon, and Community Board 6 on Friday penned an open letter to DOT Brooklyn Commissioner Keith Bray, urging him to act.
Since February, locals have also filed a number of 311 complaints related to dust, construction, and demolition in the vicinity of the facility — though it’s unclear whether those complaints were specifically about the concrete recycling facility or another industrial business near the piers. The city’s Department of Environmental Protection did not immediately respond to Brooklyn Paper’s request for clarification about the complaints.
The pols are asking Bray to implement new dust control measures, educate residents on the facility by creating and distributing a pamphlet, and create a public-facing, project-specific liaison residents can go to with questions and concerns. They also want DOT to commit to repaving Columbia Street and surrounding roadways to improve the damaged roads.
Hanif visited the facility in July to better understand what’s already being done, she said. She saw the water-spraying apparatuses in action, but said that on windy days, they aren’t doing enough — and it’s not clear if they operate on weekends, when no one is on the site.
The council member said that since that visit, the DOT has not done “anything substantial” to address the dust issues.
“As an elected official, it is up to me and my colleagues to push the DOT, or any other agency, to be transparent,” Hanif said. “And if they’re saying there’s no issue, well, OK, present that in a way where residents feel less anxious, residents know what’s going on and they know who to call up if there’s an exacerbation of dust or noise.”
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