You may remember that one of the theories floated for the origins of the Roebling Oil Field was the historic presence of a manufactured gas plant (MGP) storage facility nearby (at North 13th and Wythe, I believe). Whether or not this facility was the source of the bubbling goo at the Roebling Oil Field, the legacy of these plants and their storage facilities is particularly noxious. So its good to see that New York State has finally reached an agreement whereby KeySpan (successor to Brooklyn Union Gas) will clean up the contaminants at the Wythe Holders site and 6 other sites in Brooklyn and Nassau County. In addition, KeySpan will be cleaning up 5 other former MGP sites in Brooklyn.
For you Roebling Oil Field conspiracy theorists out there, note that the DEC press release states that coal tar “has proven to be a persistent environmental contaminant”. The DEC list of KeySpan sites in Brooklyn is a bit scary – by our count at least two MGPs (Greenpoint MGP and Williamsburg MGP) and four holders (Wythe, Scholes, Keap and Skillman). As GowanusLounge has pointed out, the real concentration of these plants was along the Gowanus Canal.