By Stephen Stirling
An environmental consultant for the city Economic Development Corp. said he believes an oily substance found during road construction near Flushing Airport may be tar left behind from old asphalt being excavated at the site.
Kevin McCarty, who advises the city’s nonprofit development arm, said the city was actively investigating the source of a black, gooey substance found by College Point marine pathologist James Cervino late last month where Linden Place is being extended by the city Department of Transportation.
Cervino said he was alerted to a potential oil spill in the abandoned Flushing Airport site near the corner of 23rd Avenue and 130th Street, where Triumph Paving Co. has been conducting road grading work since late April.
When he arrived, Cervino found a goulash of oil and what he called “horrible smelling” chemicals bubbling up from the ground where road crews were digging.
McCarty said he has been working with Cervino to find the source of the potential toxins, but believes after studying photographic evidence that it may be tar left behind as an old roadway was being excavated.
“To me that’s exactly what it looks like,” McCarty said. “When you lift an old roadway up, there can be melted tar that appears underneath.”
McCarty said it could also be a byproduct of work Con Edison is doing at the site. He said the utility is in the process of relocating gas lines that run through the area.
“We’re working with Dr. Cervino. We’re not trying to minimize his concerns at all,” said EDC Vice President Andrew Hollweck.
The project, which has received $7 million in funding from President Barack Obama’s economic stimulus package, was set up to extend Linden Place through the abandoned Flushing Airport site from 23rd to 28rd avenues. The extension has been clamored for by members of Community Board 7 and College Point residents for more than a decade, who say it will help alleviate traffic in the congested Corporate Park.
McCarty said he met with Cervino May 13, and wants to find out exactly when Cervino took photographs at the site so he can pinpoint exactly what occurred.
“We’re watching very closely all the way through the project,” he said. “Although this is a road construction project, we’re handling it and looking at it with the care of an environmental project.”
Reach reporter Stephen Stirling by e−mail at sstirling@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718−229−0300, Ext. 138.
