NY Times Weighs In On Jamaica Bay Pipeline

We’ve been covering the development and ramifications of the proposed Jamaica Bay Natural Gas Pipeline since this past April, and it seems that the New York Times has finally picked up on the story as well.

The Times’ Stuart Miller summarizes the history of the pipeline’s almost clandestine construction and development process. The deal for the pipeline, which would run under the Atlantic Ocean, then cutting through the Rockaways into southeast Brooklyn, has met stiff opposition from both environmentalists and residents residing near its zones of impact.

The major concerns against the pipeline’s construction, covered here and in the times, highlight the fear of explosions, fires, and health risks in densely populated areas, and the potential damage to the fragile ecosystems of Jamaica Bay, Brooklyn’s largest national parkland. The proposal to use Floyd Bennett Field’s historic hangars has raised concerns that it will open all national parks for industrial uses. Transco Williams, the firm put in charge of this development, has had a spotty safety record in recent years having suffered explosions in pipelines across the country.

The $265 million dollar project was pushed through and endorsed by the Bloomberg administration, in an effort to promote cleaner energy alternatives to oil, bring in $8 million dollars annually in property taxes, and create jobs.