Newtown Creek Alliance has received $500,000 in operational funding from New York state Sens. Julia Salazar and Kristen Gonzalez to support its work restoring the waterway and engaging communities in Brooklyn and Queens. The senators announced the funding Nov. 9 in Brooklyn.
The grant will support the alliance’s environmental education programs, advocacy and community engagement on both sides of the creek.
Newtown Creek has a history of industrial pollution linked to decades of manufacturing and waste disposal along its banks.
“The Newtown Creek Alliance has been essential to the environmental remediation and revitalization of communities surrounding Newtown Creek and the creek itself," said Gonzalez. "This funding will go a long way in continuing the restoration of the waterway and the improvement of a neighborhood facing brownfield impact."
Contamination includes an underground oil spill estimated at 17 million to 30 million gallons, copper pollution associated with the Phelps Dodge Superfund site and industrial debris in the creek bed. Petroleum contamination once left much of the waterway with a visible sheen and strong odor.
Since 2002, Newtown Creek Alliance has worked to reduce pollution and restore the creek’s ecological functions.
The organization reports signs of recovery, including fish in the water, blue crabs near the creek’s mouth, returning waterfowl and wetland plants growing along abandoned bulkheads and sediment piles. These developments point to changes in the waterway, although major remediation work remains ongoing.
The funding will help sustain the alliance’s environmental education, advocacy and community outreach as restoration continues. Its work connects ecological recovery with public access to information about the creek’s industrial history and environmental conditions.
Residents can follow the organization’s programs and initiatives through Newtown Creek Alliance and take part in community engagement opportunities as they are announced.
The investment supports continued local efforts to improve the waterway and its surroundings, while recognizing that restoring a heavily polluted urban creek requires sustained work over many years.
