Greenpoint Petroleum Remediation Project
Public Participation:
The Department recently released a Fact Sheet for the project dated May 2009 (4 page PDF, 521 KB).
Project History
Petroleum Industry:
The northeast area of Greenpoint, between North Henry Street, Norman Avenue, and Newtown Creek, has been heavily industrialized and the site of various petroleum industries for over 140 years. Oil refining operations date back to 1834 with the refining of whale oil. Petroleum refining operations began in approximately 1860, with kerosene the major product of interest, as naptha and gasoline were considered by-products of the refining process. By 1870 over 50 refineries were located along the banks of Newtown Creek and by 1892, the majority of the area refineries were purchased and consolidated into the Standard Oil Trust. Around 1900, gasoline and fuel oils became the dominant product refined or stored in terminal facilities in the Greenpoint area. Following the breakup of the Trust in 1911, ownership of the refinery property in Greenpoint reverted to the Standard Oil Company of New York (SOCONY) and these operations became the SOCONY (later Mobil Oil Corporation) Brooklyn Refinery. The refinery reportedly had a capacity to refine over 33,000 barrels (1.4 million gallons) of crude oil a day and produced fuel oils, gasoline, kerosene, and refinery oil. Also stored within the former refinery were petroleum additives and miscellaneous refining by-products.
Refinery operations at the former ExxonMobil Brooklyn Refinery ceased in 1966. The refinery was subsequently demolished and significant portions of the refinery property were sold. Several of the subdivided lots were retained by Mobil Oil Corporation, while the other lots were sold to Amoco Oil Company (now known as BP), United Kingsway Carpet Company (subsequently renamed Long Island Carpet Cleaners, Inc.), and others.
The lots retained by ExxonMobil were utilized as a petroleum bulk storage terminal until 1993, when storage operations ceased at the property.
Amoco Oil Company (currently BP) constructed a bulk fuel storage terminal on its portion of the property that began operation in late 1969 and which continues in operation today. The BP terminal is 9.98 acres and has 11 aboveground and 1 underground storage tanks, with 2 loading racks. The storage capacity of the terminal is 5,902,512 gallons and has been used to store diesel fuel, #2 fuel oil, kerosene, and gasoline.
In addition to the petroleum facilities on the former ExxonMobil terminal site, the Paragon Oil Company occupied a portion of the property north of Bridgewater Street, between Apollo Street and Meeker Avenue. Paragon Oil was a wholly owned subsidiary of Texaco Oil, now known as Chevron/Texaco Corporation. Paragon operated a terminal storing gasoline, kerosene, diesel fuel, fuel oil (numbers 2, 4, and 6) and lube oil at this location until approximately 1969 when Peerless Importers (now Empire Merchants) purchased the property and constructed a warehouse for its operations.
Project Status
2008 Milestones/Activities
As of January 2009 approximately 10 million gallons of petroleum product has been recovered, and over 3.5 billion gallons of groundwater has been recovered and treated. In 2008, the project recovered a total of approximately 417,000 gallons of product.
Former ExxonMobil Terminal (S224088) and Mobil off-site Plume (S224087)
As of January 2009, approximately 61,000 linear feet of abandoned and contaminated piping have removed from beneath the terminal property. The pipe removal activities also have allowed the removal of shallow petroleum product contamination during the excavation.
A Waterflooding/Pulse pilot study was conducted from August to December 2008 to study new technologies to enhance free-product recovery onsite. ExxonMobil and NYSDEC are evaluating the success of this pilot study. This innovative recovery method seeks to modify oil field recovery techniques for use in enhancing remediation.
ExxonMobil is currently in the process of adding 10 additional new dual-pump recovery wells, five of which will be connected to their former ExxonMobil Terminal property groundwater treatment system. These recovery wells are initially recovering product via skimming technology, but are expected to be fully operational and capable of pumping and treating groundwater in 2009. The wells provide a more thorough coverage of a greater around the off-site plume which will increase product recovery in the short term and meet expectations for maintaining the remedial schedule.
BP Terminal (S224082)
In the fall of 2008, BP performed an extensive well rehabilitation and equipment maintenance effort on the recovery wells to increase the amount of product being recovered.
Former Paragon Oil Terminal (S224083)
In August 2008, a Vapor Phase Product Recovery pilot test program was completed on six active total fluids recovery wells at the site. The purpose of the pilot tests was to confirm the feasibility of the technology and to determine the engineering design parameters needed to develop a full scale component to the existing recovery system. The full scale component is expected to be operational in late 2009.
In 2008, 5 additional recovery wells were activated along the creek, and the steel sheeting bulkhead seems were sealed. These sealing actions, combined with the recovery landside, have largely eliminated the seep.
Apollo Street Creek Parcels (S224122)
In 2008, Texaco installed two recovery wells with skimmer pumps near the northeast corner of the property adjacent Newtown Creek that are part of the former Paragon Oil Terminal property recovery system. Additionally in 2008, Texaco rehabilitated the Apollo Street Creek Parcel bulkhead by the sealing concrete component and installing an impermeable barrier to seal the wooden component. Texaco maintains one containment boom along the eastern bulkhead, while ExxonMobil installed and maintains containment booms along the remainder of the Apollo Street Parcels bulkhead.
Additional Information:
Should you have questions regarding the status of the investigation and cleanup of the petroleum release, you may contact:
Edward Hampston
Project Engineer
Remedial Bureau E
Division of Environmental Remediation
NYS Department of Environmental Conservation
625 Broadway
Albany, NY 12233-7017
(888) 459-8667
exhampst@gw.dec.state.ny.us
For health related questions you may contact:
Dawn Hettrick
New York State Department of Health
Flanigan Square
547 River Street
Troy, NY 12180-2216
(800) 458-1158 x27880
deh02@health.state.ny.us
For questions on legal aspects associated with New York State activities at this site you may contact:
Alan Michaels
NYS Department of Environmental Conservation
625 Broadway
Albany, NY 12233-5500
(518) 402-9521
Document Repository Location:
Brooklyn Collection
Brooklyn Public Library
Grand Army Plaza
Brooklyn, NY 11238
Attn: Elizabeth Harvey
(718) 230-2101
Electronic Record:
- Community Board No. 1
- Greenpoint Public Library
- Newtown Creek Monitoring Committee
- NYSDEC Region 2 Office
- Brooklyn Public Library
