The second town hall this year on petroleum vapors in Greenpoint will take place on Wednesday.
The North Brooklyn Neighbors are hosting the town hall on “persistent petroleum odors in Greenpoint homes and on the streets” on Wednesday (6/12) at the Polish and Slavic Civic Center (176 Java St.) at 6:30 p.m.
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Representatives from the NYC Dept. of Environmental Protection, Dept. of Health & Mental Hygiene, the NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation, and the Dept. of Health are scheduled to speak and a Q&A will follow.
At the previous petroleum vapor town hall in May, DEC reps explained how they are testing the air quality in homes where vapors are reported and that DEP has been actively flushing and testing the sewer lines for petroleum vapors near Huron Street and Manhattan Avenue.
Residents at least two Greenpoint apartments have been relocated due to the vapors, including the highly publicized story of Mary Cinadr, who was temporarily relocated after petroleum vapors were detected in her apartment.
At the last meeting, DEC rep Rodney Rivera said that elevated petroleum vapors have been detected in the sewer lines at Huron Street on a few occasions by DEP, but the elevated vapors usually coincide with mornings and nights when the sewer lines are especially inundated from local households.
Residents of a Green Street aprtment experiencing vapors argued that DEC officials are not testing for volatile organic compounds inside apartments and that the private air monitoring by Green Street residents have revealed toxic petroleum-related VOCs.
DEC said that they are limited in their testing abilities and have responded to every complaint with adequate air testing. Residents who smell vapors should report the incidents to 311 and the DEC Spill Hotline at 1-800-457-7362.
I live on Greenpoint Avenue between Manhattan & Franklin and have smelled it too – last week on one evening, it was strong enough that I left the apartment. I assumed it had to do with someone grilling – but it smelled like a gas station.