On November 28th, me and my group met with Michael Wasserman, who helps the Gowanus Canal Conservancy. The Gowanus Canal Conservancy focuses on helping the Canal get back to the state that it was once in. Before it was used at a place for cargo ships to dock, it was a place for people to throw their garbage in, and a place where sewage pipes empty in, it was a natural canal that was healthy. There were giant oysters, plenty of plant life, and thriving fish populations in the marsh land, but now there are only a few crabs and fish in this toxic canal. Michael talked about how the the Conservancy has helped create bioswales, which brings down the amount of sewage that goes into the canal. Bioswales are like the idea of sidewalk trees, except slightly bigger. They usually have a tree, of course, but also some vegetation native to the area of choice. The curves out around it, letting rain water run through the bioswale and watering the plants. The water that has not soaked into the ground, runs into the sewage, now filtered because of how the water ran through the plants. The Conservancy also has this thing called The Nursery, where they use a parking lot size area to grow plants and trees native to the Gowanus Canal area. Part of the area is covered with a rain tarp that has pipes attached to it. The pipes lead to two containers on either side of the rain tarp, and fill with clean water. They then use that water to help hydrate the plants. The Gowanus Canal Conservancy hopes to achieve their goal of completely cleaning the water by 2025, but sadly that’s being optimistic. Hopefully people will take notice of the organization, and help the canal be restored to its former self.
