City Council Committee on Economic Development
Good morning, Chair Farías and thank you for holding this hearing today. My name is Lacey Tauber and I’m the Legislative Director for Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso. I am here today to express the Borough President’s support for this legislation, which will help bring environmental justice to Red Hook.
Red Hook has long been overburdened by the impacts of industry and the history of environmental racism. Home to the largest public housing development in Brooklyn, cut off from the rest of the borough by construction of the BQE and the Battery Tunnel, and more recently inundated with last-mile warehouse facilities causing a heavy increase in truck traffic, the community suffers from poor air quality and associated health effects such as heightened asthma rates.i Pedestrians and cyclists also report feeling unsafe on the streets due to the uptick in truck traffic.ii
This is the context into which giant cruise ships arrive in Brooklyn. These ships spew diesel exhaust equivalent to 34,400 idling tractor trailers per day when not connected to shore power according to the New York Timesiii, and add between 300-500+ vehicles per hour during peak hours to Red Hook’s small streets, creating a hectic traffic mess (not to mention more idling) according to EDC’s own analysis.iv
Borough President Reynoso wants to recognize EDC’s work with Council Member Avilés and the Red Hook community so far. Yet he agrees with Council Member Avilés that EDC’s agreement with the cruise ship industry does not go far enough – 2035 is too long for the community to wait for compliance
According to an industry analysis, about 42% of the existing global cruise ship fleet has adopted shore power, and two of the EDC-contracted companies have even higher uptake – about 60% of Carnival’s fleet and 65% of MSC’s can connect to shore power. California already has a shore power mandate, and all of the European Union will have one in place for its major ports by 2030.v This is to say, the industry is already changing, so it does not seem unreasonable to demand that these companies prioritize community health and safety now or find somewhere else to dock.
In order for the industry to comply, though, the City must make it feasible for them to do so. EDC must expedite upgrades to the Brooklyn terminal, and immediately pursue shore power capability in Manhattan. EDC must also do better in working with the industry and communities to create traffic mitigation plans. As mentioned, EDC’s analysis of traffic issues on port-of-call days shows a messy system that could be greatly improved by, for example, coordinating shuttle buses to common destinations and/or to public transit and adding more service on the NYC Ferry.
In conclusion, Borough President Reynoso supports Intro 0004 and encourages EDC to work with the cruise ship industry and impacted communities to make compliance possible quickly and mitigate impacts on the ground. Our communities’ health is worth the investment. Thank you.
