Colton Files Appeal in Gravesend Bay Waste Station Case

Assemblyman Bill Colton filed a legal brief on October 22 challenging Supreme Court Justice Burt Bunyan’s ruling for the city to move forward with plans to build a garbage station near Ceasar’s Bay, arguing the decision was contradictory to the judge’s previous findings.

“We believe the Judge’s split decision, as written, is inconsistent with its own findings. Judge Bunyan found the [Sanitation] Commissioner’s decision to be rational in substance, but irrational in procedure,” Colton said in a statement. “How can a decision be rational if the procedure used to make that decision is irrational? Judge Bunyan’s ruling is clearly contradictory.”

The Gravesend community and environmental activists have been protesting the waste transfer station for health and safety reasons since 2012, drawing bipartisan support from pols. An 87-year-old cancer survivor even joined the fight, claiming the nearby toxins had contributed to her illness.

Toxins found in Gravesend Bay waters in 2013 supported arguments that the station might further dredge up pollutants and create health problems for the family neighborhood.

This summer, Gravesend community members banded together with residents from the Upper East Side to fight waste transfer station plans in each of their respective neighborhoods. The Upper East Side station is also still being contested.

Colton said he believes the community will be able to stop the garbage station from opening, and vowed to continue filing appeals until they achieve their goal.