Feds Move Gowanus Clean-Up Plan Forward

• Pictured: Eastern Effects studio on Nevins Street. Image via Google Maps

GOWANUS, BROOKLYN — The Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday authorized the city to build a massive underground sewage and storm water retention tank at the head of the Gowanus Canal.

The 8-million-square-foot tank, to be located on Nevins Street between Butler Street and Degraw Street, will be a key part of a multi-year project to remove industrial waste from the canal and protect it from future contamination.

The tank will hold untreated water during storms, preventing it from being pumped into the canal when the area's drainage system is overwhelmed.

The EPA originally wanted the tank built underneath the swimming pool at Thomas Greene Playground, which is already scheduled to be closed for four years for environmental remediation.

The city expects the tank's construction to take 6 years. Wary, therefore, of closing the park for a decade, city officials pushed to use the head-of-canal site instead.

Under the EPA's order, the city has four years to obtain the land needed for that plan, or else the federal agency can order the park to be used instead.

Either way, the tank's construction requires the use of an adjacent staging area for workers and trucks.

The city has suggested using 270 Nevins St. for that purpose, a site currently leased by Gowanus film studio Eastern Effects.

The EPA's Thursday ruling permits, but does not require, that site to be used, said Elias Rodriguez, a spokesman for the agency.

"EPA is aware of the [Eastern Effects] situation and so is the City," Rodriquez said, "The EPA will cooperate with the City in implementing a different staging area should that be something the City decides to do."

The city says that the staging location hasn't been determined yet, but officials currently think 270 Nevins St. is the best option available, arguing it will keep area roads open during years of construction and help contain dirt from the work site.

(Local community members, however, want more proof of that.) Officials have also expressed their interest in helping Eastern Effects to relocate.

And they have stressed that the

However, Eastern Effects owner Scott Levy has been fighting to keep his studio open. He says he's poured $5 million into the business, and that it provides more than 200 union jobs.

Levy couldn't immediately be reached for comment Friday, but he told DNAinfo that the city has "a golden opportunity" to settle on another staging location, in the process supporting an industry it says it cares about.