NEW YORK—Second Avenue subway construction does not exceed accepted pollutant levels, said a report by Parsons Brinckerhoff, a contractor for the project.
The report studied two sections of Second Avenue, between 89 St. and 83 St., and 74 St. and 68 St., during a four-week period beginning Sept. 12, 2011. It assessed construction activity and measured particulate matter and gas pollutants. It notes levels of gas pollutants and one particulate matter exceeded reference levels at night and on six different days.
The study was reviewed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and will be presented on Jan. 26 to the Second Avenue Subway Task Force Committee of Community Board 6.
Complaints about noise, dust, and other byproducts of construction have been made by store owners and residents along the planned subway route for Phase 1, 63rd Street to 96th Street on the Upper West Side.
Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney gave the section “Mitigation of Construction Impact” a C- grade in her 2010 Second Avenue Subway Report Card. The negatives included sanitation problems, noise at night, and failing to recognize that older buildings along the construction route needed to be reinforced due to structural weakness.
The Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) has since addressed many concerns and now ends work at 10 p.m. It halted construction for a week last year to construct muck houses (enclosed noise-insulated structures), began using high-pressure water spray to capture rising dust, and adjusted the ventilation system, according to a Dec. 19 MTA report.
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