In the wake of a tornado in Brooklyn, the polluted Gowanus Canal suffers a Combined Sewage Overflow. As seen in Thew New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and NBC News.
Read MoreA short history of the Superfund and of New York City's clean-up failure over 30 years on the Gowanus Canal. Neighbors are hoping the Superfund will do what the city has not . . . clean up one of our country's most toxic waterways. Never mind that the canal's Combined Sewer Overflow system floods the canal, and sometimes the whole neighborhood, with raw sewage when it rains intensely. Produced for FROGG (Friends and Residents of Greater Gowanus). Is the city's "alternative plan" any good? Can Real Estate interests drive the Superfund away? Public comment period closes July 8. Superfund comment information: send email to: superfund.docket@epa.gov Refer to "Docket Number: EPA-HQ-SFUND-2009-063" more info on www.superfundgowanus.org
Read More"Every schoolchild in America should know the name of a former bog located on the southwest shore of Brooklyn... Gowanus." Joseph Alexiou is a journalist and historian obsessed with the history of Brooklyn. In researching his first non-fiction book on the history of the Gowanus Canal, he discovered that one of the largest and most important Battles of the Revolutionary War took place right in Brooklyn—fought along the banks of the Gowanus Creek—and yet it has been totally neglected in the national consciousness.
Through the story of the destructive and tragic battle, Joseph shares how the Battle of Brooklyn was a key moment in the Revolution, from which General George Washington took a great lesson and matured into the great military and political leader that we remember today.
Read MoreGowanus is one of America's first Urban Industrial Districts: known as the final link in the Erie Canal System. Marlene is a founding member of a group that nominated this unique area of Brooklyn to the National Register of Historic Places. In this talk, Marlene takes us through the history of Gowanus, explaining how its scale and architecture is both unique and exuberant. We learn that Brownstone Brooklyn, an American icon, was built on the back of Gowanus industry.
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