In February 2022, Gateway National Recreation Area completed a hazard fuels reduction project in Queens, NY. The project, around a large, densely populated neighborhood near Jamaica Bay, involved mechanical treatment to establish both a fuel break and defensible space that would provide an anchor should a wildfire ignite. Spring Creek, the NPS-managed property, has a very deep fire/public safety history. The site includes filled/reclaimed land composed of dredged material, waste fill materials, ash, and sludge deposited at various times between the early 1900s and 1960s, when the site was owned and operated by the City of New York as a waste disposal area. Both chemical and radiological contaminants have been found at this site. NPS initiated response action in 2017 under the authority of the Comprehensive Environmental, Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA, commonly known as the Superfund Act).
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
