Impacts of New York City’s

Waterways

Photo Credit: Mitch Waxman

Background

NYCEDC initiated a study in Oct 2015 to better understand

the value of New York City’s Borough waterways and

identify opportunities to grow waterborne commerce (via

barge)

The study included significant outreach to the maritime

community:

- Tug and barge businesses (operators)

- Water-dependent businesses (shippers/receivers)

- NYS Dept of Environmental Conservation

(regulatory)

- US Army Corps of Engineers (regulatory)

As outlined in Mayor deBlasio’s OneNYC, freight

transportation by water is encouraged where possible, with

ambitious growth goals

Water freight provides significant public benefits by

- Limiting truck use, which

o Improves air quality, lowers carbon footprint

(Mayor’s 80% reduction by 2050 aka 80X50)

o Reduces roadway congestion

- Providing good-paying, middle class jobs

2

Fuel Barge on Newtown Creek Photo Credit: Mitch Waxman

NYC’s Borough Waterways

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12 borough waterways

have maritime industrial

businesses across New

York City.

These waterways are

connected to the

maritime economy by

approximately 6 primary

channels

Eastchester Creek

Westchester Creek

Flushing Bay / Flushing Creek

Jamaica Bay

Head of Bay

Mott Basin

Bronx River

Newtown Creek

Gowanus Creek/ Gowanus Canal

Vernam Basin

Coney Island Creek

Jamaica Bay Reaches A & B

Hudson River

East River

Kill Van Kull to

Arthur Kill

Anchorage Channel

Ambrose Channel

Buttermilk Channel

Yesterday: A Brief History of NYC’s Borough Waterways

In the early 1800’s, many of NYC’s

secondary waterways were once tidal

estuaries and creeks that were later

excavated or filled for commercial use.

They became home to NYC’s industrial base

(e.g. smelting plants, tanneries, shipyards,

coal yards, paint and ink factories)

The maritime infrastructure (canals with

bulkheads) created in the 1800s and 1900s

continues to support NYC’s overall economy.

4

Gowanus Canal – Today Photo Credit: Mitch Waxman

Gowanus Canal – Early 20th Century Photo Courtesy: thesixthborough.com

Today: Snapshot of Water Freight in NYC’s Borough

Waterways

5

Scrap metal business (Pascap) on Eastchester Creek

looking North Photo Courtesy: Tugster.com, Will Van Dorp

4.4M tons of cargo were handled in 20141

These volumes equate to 4% of all cargo

handled in the Port of NY and NJ

These secondary waterways together would

rank as the 81st largest port in the US, larger

than Bridgeport, CT (#89)

There are approximately 35 active

businesses using the waterways

Approximately 700 jobs2 are supported, with

average salaries between $90K to $120K/yr

Inland water freight contributed to economic

output of $300M for 2014

1. USACE 2014 Waterborne Commerce Data

2. Inland water freight transportation industry and

associated support services (direct, indirect, induced)

3. Source: NYCEDC Maritime Support Services Study,

2007

Overall, marine support services

employs 7,100 direct jobs

(including main channels) and

contributes to $2B in economic

impact3

Environmental Benefits

6

Each year, about 440,000 truck

trips are eliminated1, which is

equivalent to about 30 days2 worth

of traffic on the George Washington

Bridge, world’s busiest bridge

Up to 6.6 million truck miles

travelled are saved3

- = $2.65M saved in infrastructure

(roadway maintenance) costs4

11,220 tons of CO2 are saved per

year5

Inland barging emits 90% and 95%

less CO and NO than trucks per

mile6

1. Based on 20 tons per truck (220,000 one way trips)

2. Based on 14,000 trucks cross eastbound GWB

3. Based on 15 mile truck distance

4. 6.6Mmiles*$.40/miles

5. Source: EDF Green Freight Handbook

((6,600,000X1,700g/mile)/1,000,000g/metric ton))

6. Source: Port of Victoria

7. Source: Port of Pittsburgh

8. Source: NYCEDC Maritime Support Services Study, 2007

Overall, marine support services

eliminates 3.1M trucks from NYC

roads each year8

Cargo Capacity Equivalents 7

Major Commodities by Weight

7

#1 Aggregate

• Fluctuates based on business cycle

• Customers include building construction

companies, NYCDOT (salt)

• Ex: Crushed stone, sand, gravel

#2 Fuel

• Due to increase in fuel efficiency, fuel

demand has decreased

• Customers include distributors of home

heating oil

• Ex: Gasoline, alcohol

#3 Recyclables & Scrap Metal

• An export industry that continues to

transform as recycling increases

• Customers include Sims Municipal

Recycling

• Ex: Glass, paper, plastic, metal

Data source: USACE, 2014

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Volumes

Aggregates Fuel Waste & Scrap Other

43%

37%

20%

Other = Timber

2001: Closure of

Fresh Kills Landfill

Commodities: Aggregates

8

Source/Origin

• Quarries north of NYC, which are typically

adjacent to the Hudson e.g. Clinton Point,

Haverstraw

• Tilcon is the primary supplier of aggregate to

NYC

Industry Trends

• Tugs move multiple barges to mooring buoys in

NY Harbor

• Individual barges then distributed from mooring

buoys to aggregate plants in NYC

• Increased recycling is impacting the volumes of

virgin material

Major Locations

• Flushing Bay, Jamaica Bay, Gowanus

Companies Interviewed

• Tilcon, Peckham, RCA Asphalt, NYCDOT,

Inwood Material Terminal, Seville Ready Mix,

Empire Transit Mix

• NYCDOT terminal in Flushing is being renovated

to receive waterborne aggregates

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Aggregates Volume for Secondary Channels

Clinton Point

Data source: USACE

Photo Credit: Center for Urban Land Use Interpretation

Commodities: Fuel

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Source/Origin

• Fuel originates from terminals in New Jersey and

Staten Island via pipeline or rail

Industry Trends

• Fuel users transitioning to other fuels (natural gas,

renewables)

• Fuel efficiency increasing (boilers and engines)

• Barges continue to supplement pipeline

transportation for redundancy (e.g. JFK airport via

Buckeye Pipeline)

• Oil companies selling facilities (e.g. BP selling

property on Newtown Creek)

• Some facilities owned by regional/national

companies: Motiva, Sprague

• Other facilities owned by local companies: Bayside

Fuel, Schildwachter, Skaggs

Major Locations

• Newtown Creek, Gowanus, Jamaica Bay

Companies Interviewed

• Bayside Fuel, Sprague, Schildwachter, Skaggs

Tug and fuel barge on Newtown Creek Photo Credit: Mitch Waxman

Data source: USACE

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Fuel Volume for Secondary Channels

Crude Petroleum Gasoline

Kerosene Distillate Fuel Oil

Residual Fuel Oil Alcohols

Commodities: Scrap Metal & Waste

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Source/Origin

• Scrap metal and waste collected in NYC

for export

Industry Trends

• Transition to (residential) recycling

• Increased use of barges and rail

• DSNY to have four MTS by 2019:

Flushing Bay (QN), Hamilton Ave (BK), E

91st Street (MN), Southwest Brooklyn

• Once complete, additional 1.3M

tons expected on secondary

waterways

• Visy Paper on Staten Island processes

City paper, move toward single stream

possible

• Sims under contract to DSNY for

recyclables

Major locations

• Newton Creek, Bronx River

Companies Interviewed

• Sims Municipal Recycling, Inwood

Material Terminal

Recyclables barge on Newtown Creek (Sims) Photo Credit: Mitch Waxman

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Scrap Metal and Waste Volumes for Secondary Waterways

Waste & Scrap (Not Elsewhere Classified) Iron & Steel Scrap

2001: Closure of Fresh Kills Landfill

Iron and Steel prices increase

four fold between 2002 and

20121 1. Source: http://www.nypress.com/when-times-

get-tough-the-tough-get-rolling/ 2. City Limits. DSNY.

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15

2015: 1.8M of 3M total tons of

DSNY residential and institutional

waste moved via rail or water2

Why do businesses choose to use water transportation?

Cost effective compared to trucking for

most bulk commodities that are heavy

and inexpensive (price per unit)

Businesses can locate closer to

customers/end users in urban areas (e.g.

Sprague Energy) and reduce

transportation costs

- Savings of $10.67/ton when

shipped via barge compared to

trucking1

- That saves approximately

$44,000,000 for NYC businesses

Best for transporting goods that are not

time sensitive (construction material,

aggregates)

- Not subject to roadway congestion

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Sprague Energy on Eastchester Creek Photo Courtesy: Sprague.com

Hamilton Asphalt (NYCDOT) on Gowanus Creek

1. Source: Port of Victoria, Texas

Water Freight Tonnages 2014, by location

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Aggregate Fuel Waste & Scrap Other

Data source: USACE Gowanus Creek Channel and Canal volumes combined, though USACE classifies as two different waterways

• Newtown Creek is #1

borough waterway in NYC by

tonnage, Gowanus Creek

and Channel #2

• Both designated as

Superfund Sites in 2010,

now managed by US EPA

• Once a waterway transports

over 1M tons/year, it is

considered “high use” by the

Army Corps, however this in

an informal guideline, among

other criteria

• Hitting 1M tons/yr does not

ensure waterway is

guaranteed to be dredged, but

increases likelihood

Other = timber

NYCEDC to focus

on these locations

Newtown Creek – 8 businesses using the waterway

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Channel Characteristics

• Superfund site

• Authorized depth: 12’ to 23’

• Current depth: 3’ to 16’

• Last dredged: 1951, 80,000 CY

Maritime Industrial Users

• 9 active users

4 scrap: Sims Municipal Recycling, TNT,

Charles King, Allocco Recycling

4 fuel: Motiva, Metro Fuel, Amaco / BP,

Bayside

1 public facility: NYCDEP

• 3 possible users

2 aggregates: Empire Transit Mix, Nycon

Supply Corp (concrete)

1 fuel: Getty

Maritime Activity

• Tons/year: 1M+

• Vessel calls/year: 1,001

Motiva

Metro Fuel

Amaco/BP

Bayside

Sims

TNT Scrap

Charles King

Allocco Recycling

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Aggregates Fuel Waste & Scrap

Ferrara Bros

Nycon Supply Corp

Empire Transit Mix

Eastchester Creek – 3 businesses using the waterway, 1 of

which is in NYC

14

Channel Characteristics

• Authorized depth: 10’

• Current depth: 2’ to 7’

• Last dredged: 1989, 2010, 25,000 CY for $3M

($120/CY)

Maritime Industrial Activity

• 3 Active Users

1 scrap: Pascap

1 fuel: Sprague Oil

1 aggregate: RCA Asphalt

• 4 Possible Users

1 fuel: Getty

3 aggregate: Canal Asphalt, Peckham

Industries, TBC

Maritime Activity

• Tons/year: 360,000

• Vessel calls/year: 332

RCA Asphalt

Sprague

Pascap

RCA Asphalt

Peckham

Getty

Canal Asphalt

Photo Credit: Digital Globe

Westchester Creek & Bronx River - 3 businesses using the

waterways

15

Channel Characteristics

• WC: Authorized depth: 12’

• WC: Current depth: 12’

• WC: Last dredged: 1991104,000 CY for

$1,092,661 ($10.45/CY)

• BR: Authorized depth: 10’

• BR: Current depth: 10’

• BR: Last dredged: 1991, 64,158 CY for

$770,629 ($12.01CY)

Maritime Industrial Users

• 3 Active Users

1 scrap: Sims Metal

Management

1 fuel: Schildwachter Oil

1 aggregate: Casa Ready Mix

• 1 possible user

1 waste/scrap: Castle Hill Recycling

Maritime Activity

• WC Tonnage/year: 49,000

• WC Vessel calls/year: 44

• BR Tonnage/year: 293,000

• BR Vessel calls/year: 510

Schildwachter Oil

Casa Ready Mix

Sims Metal Management

Castle Hill Recycling

Photo Credit: Digital Globe

Waterway infrastructure

Federal Channel

• Navigation channel that receives federal

authorization for US Army Corps of Engineers

to construct and maintain (usually via

dredging)

Berth

• Where barges moor to load/unload

• Requires sufficient water depth to place a

barge adjacent to a bulkhead

• Responsibility for dredging rests with berth

owner/user

Connector

• Links berth with channel

• Responsibility for dredging rests with berth

owner/user

Bulkhead

• Wood or steel retaining wall

• Needs to be maintained

• Supports equipment to load/unload barges

16

Physical components of borough waterways that require maintaining

Dredging & Downward Spiral of Waterborne Commerce

Due to regulatory or financial

constraints, many maritime-

dependent businesses do not

dredge berth or connector.

17

Once tonnage falls below

a critical threshold (1M

tons/yr), Army Corps less

inclined to dredge federal

channels.

Therefore, overall tonnage

decreases along a

particular waterway.

If the Army Corps does not

dredge federal channel, fewer

business are unable to use

channels for commerce.

1 2

3

4

Why does this matter?

With fully operable waterways…

Truck traffic decreases

o An estimated 60,000 to 90,000 truck trips

could be eliminated if potential sites are

dredged

Environmental savings of 11K tons

CO2/yr

Infrastructure savings of $2M+

Private sector businesses supported

o 35 businesses actively receiving product

supported

City priorities are aligned

o 80 X 50 (emissions reductions)

o Vision Zero (fewer trucks = fewer fatalities)

o OneNYC (increase in water freight)

o SMIA (Significant Maritime Industrial Areas)

and PMAZ (Priority Marine Activity Zones)

Resiliency and redundancy promoted

o RRAP (Regional Resiliency Assessment

Program)

18

Peckham on Eastchester Creek

relies on 10,000 truck trips/year

Silted berth = unable to barge