Tag: Environment

Nov 13

2013

A smell surrounding Peace Bridge air study

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State officials proclaimed a month ago that air monitoring results near the Peace Bridge showed no serious pollution problem in the adjacent neighborhood plagued by high asthma rates that studies have linked to bridge traffic. In fact, officials went so far as to declare: “the data suggest that there are no significant differences between air quality in the plaza neighborhood and in the City of Buffalo overall.” However, an Investigative Post analysis has determined that conclusion is “not scientifically valid,” in the words of Sherri Mason, associate professor of chemistry at SUNY Fredonia, one of nine experts interviewed for this[...]

Posted 10 years ago

Oct 24

2013

State to test for contamination at Gallagher Beach

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The Cuomo administration has relented and agreed to test Gallagher Beach in South Buffalo for possible contamination before deciding whether to open it for swimming. In fact, crews began work this week to collect water, soil and sediment samples. An employee on the job for Ecology and Environment Inc., the contractor hired to collect and analyze samples, said the testing is the most comprehensive the firm has conducted for a beach. The decision to conduct comprehensive tests follows two Investigative Post stories earlier this month (found here and here) that reported the beach rests in a harbor basin contaminated with[...]

Posted 11 years ago

Oct 22

2013

State’s sewage right to know act is failing

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New York State Assemblyman Sean Ryan (D) is urging the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to enforce the sewage right to know act. Ryan made the announcement on Friday in Buffalo. The law went into effect and calls for the public to know how much sewage is being discharged into local waterways. Despite that, Investigative Post in June found many of the reports are incomplete. “No one swims in their toilet,” said Assemblymember Ryan. “We don’t want to swim in waterways that are contaminated.” Since the law went into effect in May, there have been 252 sewer discharges[...]

Posted 11 years ago

Oct 17

2013

This will blow your mind

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Our Earth is changing rapidly. There is no doubt. But people around the globe have a hard time seeing shrinking lakes and forests and urban sprawl from thousands of miles away. Until now. TIME magazine and Google partnered with NASA and the U.S Geological Survey to create a series of “stunning” timelapse satellite photographs that show how the world has changed over nearly three decades. Google also has some of the most shocking visuals. At the right-hand corner of the box of satellite images you can type in a location, such as Buffalo, and witness the changes that have occurred here. But Buffalo’s[...]

Posted 11 years ago

Oct 16

2013

Cuomo muddies the waters on Gallagher Beach

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A month-and-a-half ago, Gov. Andrew Cuomo declared his intent to open Gallagher Beach near the South Buffalo – Lackawanna border for public swimming. Congressman Brian Higgins is pushing to open the beach as soon as next summer. Not so fast, concluded an analysis by Erie County’s former senior public health engineer. He concluded opening Gallagher Beach for swimming is “probably impractical” because of a raft of environmental concerns. The analysis, coupled with reporting by our environmental reporter Dan Telvock, painted a picture of a beach whose waters rest in a harbor basin contaminated with PCBs and whose neighbors include two Superfund sites that[...]

Posted 11 years ago

Oct 8

2013

What is this stuff in Union Ship Canal?

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Don’t think contaminants from past industrial uses are actually leaching into local waterways? Think again. As we reported last week about the plan to open a beach for public swimming at Gallagher Beach in the Outer Harbor, there are serious concerns about leaching contaminants entering Lake Erie from nearby toxic Superfund sites. The Bethlehem Steel and Hanna Furnace properties are the two closest to the beach and both still pose a significant health risk. I visited the beach and nearby properties numerous times during the research for the article. One spot I visited was the Union Ship Canal, next to where[...]

Posted 11 years ago

Oct 3

2013

Troubled waters at Gallagher Beach?

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Opening Gallagher Beach for swimming is “probably impractical from a public health standpoint” because of stormwater pollution, sediment contamination and neighboring toxic sites, a consultant for the Erie County Health Department has concluded. The consultant’s analysis, obtained under the Freedom of Information Law, and subsequent reporting by Investigative Post raises serious concerns about a plan being pushed by U.S. Rep. Brian Higgins, Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Byron Brown. They want to open the beach for public swimming as part of a larger plan to develop the Outer Harbor into a state park. Higgins, a champion of opening the city’s[...]

Posted 11 years ago

Oct 2

2013

NY AG sues Amigone to stop crematory

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State Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman’s office filed a lawsuit Tuesday to prevent the Amigone Funeral Home from reopening its crematory in the Sheridan Park area of the Town of Tonawanda. For years, nearby residents have complained about the offensive odors, noise and pollution emitted from the crematory. With the help of the Clean Air Coalition of Western New York, residents took their complaints to the Department of Environmental Conservation and the attorney general’s office. In July 2012, the attorney general’s office successfully convinced the crematory to shut down its operations. However, a year later, Amigone announced plans to reopen the[...]

Posted 11 years ago
Investigative Post

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