Although only a tiny fraction of Big Apple parks recycle, a new one now under construction along the Brooklyn waterfront is set to take being green to another level.
The planned 85-acre Brooklyn Bridge Park, which is set to partially open this winter after two decades of planning, is being partially built with recycled materials. This includes scraps from former pier sheds that were torn down to make way for the park.
The park will also feature an irrigation system relying on recycled rainwater and an on-site recycling system for its waste.
Even project opponents furious over the park’s controversial plan to include luxury condos won’t be able to find fault with its recycling initiatives.
Lisa Willner, a spokeswoman for the state-city entity overseeing the Brooklyn Heights-DUMBO plan, said a containment tank set for Pier 1 would hold up to 104,000 gallons of water that will be used to irrigate the park. Storm water could also be stored at other parts of the park, she said.
Although officials of the planned park are taking recycling seriously, the Post reported Monday that few city-run parks recycle. Not only are routine recyclables like bottles, cans and paper being sent to landfills, but so is other waste that is supposed to be trashed separately, such as animal carcasses, medical waste and bins of used kitchen oil.
Of the city’s 1,875 parks, only Central Park has a strong recycling program and at least 18 others – including Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, Marine Park, McCarren Park and Manhattan Beach — have smaller ones.
City Parks Department workers collected 35,035 tons of waste in parks last year, and the Department of Sanitation supplemented service by collecting thousands more.
The Parks Department couldn’t provide a breakdown of how much tonnage gets recycled, but DOS confirmed that whatever waste it collects at parks heads to landfills and isn’t separated and recycled.
Over the past two decades, more than 10,000 abandoned vehicles have been ridded from parks. DOS collects the vehicles, and an agency spokesman said it’s unclear whether cars get recycled because private companies hired by the city decide how the cars should be disposed.
