Hudson Democracy

No Shelter for N.Y.C., N.J., L.I. as Irene Moves In

Storm track, 1 a.m., August 28

Hurricane Irene is moving through New Jersey, according to the latest projections moving just along the coast, brushing the Island Beach State Park area. Heavy rains here in Jersey City at 1 a.m. National Hurricane Center predicting secondary landfall near the Rockaways. History after the jump:

Strong Hurricane Heads Toward N.Y.C.

Hurricane Irene is heading north along the Atlantic Coast, forecasts show the storm going straight up the shore to New York. Above is the National Hurricane Center's flooding map for a category two hurricane. Currently Irene is a category three storm. According to the map for a category three storm, my neighborhood would be under more than ten feet of water. 

It's No Mystery: Cuts Have Consequences

As I said in a previous post, blizzards are hardly a rare occurrence in our part of the world. When I was a kid, you could usually count on two major snowfalls a year, and we've been getting back to that average. It would make sense for Atlanta to be thrown into chaos by a blizzard; for the same thing to happen in New York and New Jersey is just pathetic. I've been out since the storm hit. The snow is the same grade of stuff we had back then: wet and heavy, but pliable and good for snowmen (or an igloo). But something is much different this year, and it has nothing to do with precipitation.

Riding Around the City on a Bike: A Roundtable

New York City has marked off hundreds of miles of bike lanes on roads in the five boroughs—Brooklyn and Manhattan, mostly. The Times' Room for Debate blog has a thoughtful series on the successes and demerits of the plans. Quotes after the jump:

Irony In Our Schools

The Bloomberg school of school reform dictates heavy reliance on standard test scores, in order to evaluate student progress and teacher effectiveness. Mayor Bloomberg has appointed Cathie Black to run the schools, a former publishing C.E.O. to run the schools who doesn't meet the statutory requirements to be a New York schools chancellor. She has received a waiver of the requirements from the state commissioner of education, based on her extraordinary and hugely successful business career. There's a great irony here.

In a Shadow

The Vornado Real Estate Trust wants to build a 1,200 foot tower on 34th Street in Manhattan, two blocks east of the Empire State Building. This would be the view from New Jersey.

D.C.

Spectra Maps Pipeline in Documents

Official map from Spectra Energy of Houston, Texas, showing the route of the proposed natural gas pipeline between Staten Island and Manhattan that would run through Bayonne and Jersey City. 

The route outlined above is described as a "study area" on the map.

The map is from a project overview document which says the pipeline would have an initial capacity of 950 million cubic feet per day, significantly more than what has been described in city documents and other reports.

D.C.

Healy Says Pipeline All Risk, No Benefit

Here is Mayor Healy's letter to U.S. Senator Robert Menendez outlining his official opposition to the Spectra Energy natural gas pipeline which, as proposed, would run through Greenville and Downtown:

January 29, 2010

Honorable Robert Menendez
Senator, State of New Jersey
317 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Senator Menendez:

Spectra Energy is currently proposing the creation of a steel gas pipe line that will run through a densely  populated area of Jersey City. I am in opposition to the line’s creation in light of the potential hazards  that it may pose upon completion, the negative effects of which would potentially be felt, not only by the  residents of Jersey City, but also by the New York metropolitan region and possibly the world’s financial  markets. The proposed route is set to traverse the most densely populated sections of Jersey City that  contain numerous and antiquated utilities already present within our roadways. The construction of the  30” steel pipe line will also hamper our public right-of-way in terms of the impact to our existing utilities  and limit future residential and commercial development. Additionally, it will have a significant negative  economic impact on private properties adjacent to the pipeline.

The line will transport up to 800 million cubic feet per day of natural gas through an area of Jersey City  that is host to a number of entities classified as Tier 1 and Tier 2 Critical Infrastructure by the Department  of Homeland Security, including the New Jersey Turnpike, the Path Transit System, the Holland Tunnel, the Hudson Bergen Light Rail, as well as many global financial institutions. In addition, the Tropicana Plant, which houses an Anhydrous Ammonia containment vessel, is located on the proposed pipeline route.   

The failure of this 30” high pressure gas pipe line would be catastrophic: all of the existing water, gas,  electric and telecommunication services would be severely affected and the New Jersey Turnpike, PATH trains and the entrance to the Holland Tunnel would be rendered out of commission. The resulting devastation would severely hamper our emergency response team due to impassable routes and a lack of resources to fight this type and magnitude of failure. The destruction and disruption of major financial  institutions located on our waterfront would cause a ripple effect throughout markets worldwide. The safety of thousands of residents would be put in considerable jeopardy. Finally, the line would also increase the vulnerability of Jersey City as a potential target for terror attacks.

Also, in order to decrease the likelihood of accidental breakage and increase preparedness in the event of  said breakage, the City would be pressed to incur an additional financial burden on our already strained  resources. Our response team would need to be equipped with new state-of-the-art apparatus specialized in combating this type of failure. The protection, inspection, and maintenance of the proposed gas line  poses significant complications and difficulty. Our City’s aged water and sewer system requires routine  emergency maintenance and repairs.  There have been numerous instances where contractors excavate our  streets without proper mark outs, making accidental breakage of the line a feasible reality.

In the case of the Durham Woods gas pipeline explosion in Edison, NJ in 1994, the National Transportation Safety Board found that “A contributing cause was a gouge to the gas pipeline by  excavation equipment, such as a backhoe.” In this incident the resulting pipeline rupture lead to the ignition of escaping gas, resulting in flames that rose several feet into the air. [sic] The fire destroyed several  buildings in the Durham Woods Apartment Complex and caused damages in excess of $25 million. This scenario replayed in Jersey City would create unimaginable loss of life and devastating effects to vital infrastructure. The risks posed greatly outweigh any potential benefits to Jersey City.

The proposed installation of this gas pipeline benefits two entities, Spectra Energy and Con Edison of New York. It is quite apparent the intention is to use Jersey City as a conduit to deliver their product from Staten Island to Manhattan, increasing gas supply to New York City residents, with little or no regard to the safety and security of the citizens of Jersey City. This pipeline will not provide any economic benefit to New Jersey nor Jersey City by increasing the availability of natural gas.

I urge you to join me in opposition to the construction of the Spectra Energy pipe line in light of the potential dangers that it may pose to Jersey City and our residents.

Sincerely,

[signed]

Jerramiah T. Healy

Mayor of Jersey City

I completely agree with the mayor on this. The pipeline is an unfair burden on Jersey City. Our city, as well as Bayonne, is being asked to accept considerable risk and liability for absolutely no benefit or even compensation. Spectra Energy considers Jersey City merely to be a conduit through which to ship natural gas at a profit. That is unacceptable.

The only way this might work, and probably not even then, would be if Spectra Energy committed to paying Jersey City and Bayonne a very high yearly special assessment on the pipeline and the lands around it. Under any other terms this is an insult to Jersey City.

Spectra Energy already has commitments from natural gas shippers and is quietly meeting with landowners in the proposed right-of-way, which means the big money is behind this and it's about to be done.

I made a map of the pipeline's approximate route and posted it Saturday. Here's a PDF of the official project overview, which includes Spectra Energy's map of the pipeline.

D.C.

Gowanus Canal On Superfund List

The Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn has been designated a Superfund site, says the Environmental Protection Agency:

From Gowanus Bay to New York Harbor, the agency has found contamination along the entire length of the clouded 1.8-mile canal in a preliminary assessment, including pesticides, metals and the cancer-causing chemicals known as PCBs.

The agency estimates that the project will last 10 to 12 years and cost $300 million to $500 million. The city estimated that its approach would take nine years.

The E.P.A., which proposed the Superfund designation last April at the urging of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, made its decision after a public comment period that involved more than 50 meetings with city officials, developers, community groups and others. Nine other Superfund sites across the country were also designated on Tuesday.

The Times has a very cool slideshow of Gowanus Canal photos.

The Gowanus Canal was polluted during heavy industrial use in the 1950's and 60's; like all waterways around New York and northeast New Jersey, its use was heavily reduced by increasing reliance on automobiles and trucks, and it was left to rot as a grey abyss with hellish concentrations of pollution.

The lower six miles of the Passaic River is a Superfund site. When I was a sophomore in high school, I joined the crew and we rowed our boats in the filth. (One day I'll write more about that.) It looks a lot like the Gowanus Canal; a sick color, condoms, needles and dope bags in the muck.

But that's just surface filth. What the E.P.A. is talking about is PCBs and other deadly chemicals that have settled into the silty mud beneath the river. (The worst problem in the Passaic River is Down Neck in Newark, where they used to make Agent Orange during the Vietnam War.)

D.C.

Kerik Sentenced to 4 Years in Prison

Former New York City police commissioner Bernard Kerik was sentenced to four years in federal prison today for accepting a bribe from a construction company with Mafia ties and lying about it multiple times.

Kerik was former mayor Rudolph Giuliani's body man and driver. Giuliani later promoted him, first to commissioner of the Corrections Department and then to police commissioner.

Giuliani recommended him to former President George W. Bush to run the Department of Homeland Security.

Kerik was also convicted of lying to the government during his vetting for that job. He withdrew before his appointment was considered by the Senate when a record of low-life mendacity was revealed.

D.C.