Salt piles: Not a new issue!

In a report released by NYC City Council Member David Yassky's office in 2005, waterfront salt piles citywide were included on a list of "10 Waterfront Wastes and Opportunities," or "Non-water dependent uses [that] should be removed from the waterfront and replaced with either water dependent economic development opportunities or other uses that benefit the public, such as parks and open space."

The report then goes on to explain details of each of the 10 uses, and describes salt piles by saying:

Road salt is needed to keep City streets safe and accessible during winter snowstorms but these salt piles do not need to be sited along New York City’s waterfront! Although the City has committed to move or containerize some of these salt piles progress has been slow or non-existent.....

In addition to being a poor use of the waterfront, road salt may be harmful to the environment. According to the non-profit Riverkeeper, road salt typically contains sodium ferrocyanide and a variety of chlorides, which can break down into cyanide and negatively charged chloride ions that are harmful to wildlife, vegetation and aquatic organisms.

Check out the rest of the report, which I found hosted on the Greenpoint Waterfront Association for Parks and Planning