Brooklyn Borough President

MARKOWITZ SUES EXXONMOBIL FOR DUMPING OIL IN NEWTOWN CREEK

Oil Spill is Larger Than Exxon Valdez Disaster

On Monday, November 7, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz and City Council Members David Yassky and Eric Gioia moved to intervene as plaintiffs in Riverkeeper’s lawsuit against ExxonMobil for violating the federal Clean Water Act. The international petroleum giant is being sued for its role in a 17 million gallon oil spill that stretches for 55 acres beneath Brooklyn. Fifty years after the spill occurred, oil continues to leak into Newtown Creek, polluting Greenpoint’s soil, groundwater, the Creek, the East River and the whole of Brooklyn’s waterfront. The spill courses through industrial, commercial, and residential property, affecting an estimated 100 homes and dozens of businesses. Heavy unrefined oil is visibly leaking into and contaminating the creek, which separates Brooklyn and Queens.

“ExxonMobil has a moral obligation to Brooklyn and America to clean up this disgusting pool of toxic oil —the time is now!” said Borough President Markowitz. “The company is making record profits from high gasoline prices, yet they are shirking their responsibilities to this community. Brooklyn’s waterfront is one of our most precious resources, and ExxonMobil must thoroughly and permanently remove the oil and stop the leak so that residents can live in the neighborhood without fearing for the health of their families and their environment. Our patience has run out. It is time for ExxonMobil to clean up their act.”

“ExxonMobil must take responsibility for this terrible ecological disaster,” said Council Member Yassky. “When I first came into office and began fighting to get this oil spill cleaned up, it had already been lurking beneath the surface of Greenpoint-Williamsburg for 50 years. Every day ExxonMobil does nothing, Brooklyn waterways become more polluted. This spill is a crime against the environment, and it must be remedied.”

“Polluters beware: The days when you can ruin our water and poison our backyards with toxic waste are over,” said Council Member Gioia, Chair of the Oversight and Investigations Committee. “Newtown Creek should be the Gold Coast of Brooklyn and Queens, but we can’t reclaim the waterfront until the oil companies take responsibility for their spill and clean it up. This suit sends a message loud and clear: The companies who caused this devastation had better clean it up and make Newtown Creek safe for the people who live and work in the area.”

The spill is a major source of contamination throughout New York Harbor and the water current and tide continue to carry carcinogens, lead, and other toxins from the spill for miles. Remedial efforts have failed, even though the disaster was discovered 25 years ago.

Riverkeeper originally filed a lawsuit in May of 2004. The oil spill at Newtown Creek, at over 17 million gallons, is larger than estimates given for the Exxon Valdez disaster. This is a citizen suit, brought under the Clean Water Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.