Over the course of several months, North Brooklyn Neighbors and NYU Langone collaborated with residents near the NuHart Superfund (and subsequent cleanup) site on a survey about the site and its impact on their health.
Recently, the survey findings were presented to CB 1 and have now been shared online for public review. The 35-question survey covered demographics, behavioral changes, environmental experiences, and health outcomes. 196 neighbors participated in the survey, with 104 living in the area directly around NuHart (labeled Zone North A).
Those living closest to the NuHart site (82% of Zone North A participants) were most likely to make behavioral changes, the primary one being information seeking.
In terms of health outcomes, the most common across all surveyed zones were seasonal allergies, high cholesterol, influenza, and high blood pressure. While the survey didn’t find strong relationships between specific health issues and proximity to the site, 58% of all participants said that they did feel that NuHart has impacted their health.
Ultimately, more research and outreach is needed, as the survey was self-reported and a relatively small sample size. Takeaways suggest future work needed in the areas of community education and resources, soil testing (especially at deeper levels), surveying larger sample sizes, and studying other long-term environmental exposures.
See the full results here.