SUFFOLK CLOSEUP - "It's Drill Baby Spill" Offshore Drilling

By Karl Grossman

It’s been decades since a fisherman out of Montauk told me about seeing a ship east of Long Island similar to those he had seen searching for oil in the Gulf of Mexico when he was a shrimper there. I telephoned oil company after company and each gave a firm denial about having any interest in looking for petroleum off Long Island.

That was until a PR man from Gulf called back and said, yes, his company was looking for oil and gas off Long Island—and was involved in a consortium of 32 oil companies (many of which earlier issued denials).

It was my first experience in oil industry honesty—an oxymoron.

Then, after breaking the story as an investigative reporter for the daily Long Island Press about the oil industry seeking to drill in the offshore Atlantic, there were years of staying on the story. I traveled the Atlantic Coast including in 1971 getting onto the first off-shore drilling rig set up in the Atlantic, off Nova Scotia. The riskiness of offshore drilling was obvious on that rig. There were spherical capsules to eject workers in emergencies. And a rescue boat went round-and-round 24-hours-a-day. The man from Shell Canada said: “We treat every foot of hole like a potential disaster.” 

You might recall seeing movies from years ago about oil drilling in the west and the drill hitting a “gusher” and it raining oil on happy workers. But on an offshore rig that “gusher” would be raining oil on the sea and life in it and then the oil would move to shore. 

In the ‘70s there were the weeks of public hearings I covered at state houses in Boston, Massachusetts and Trenton, New Jersey, and also hearings on Long Island. I traveled down the coast to the Florida Keys, its turquoise waters on the agenda of the oil industry, too.

The Suffolk County executive through most of the 1970s, John V.N. Klein of Smithtown, was a leading opponent in Suffolk of offshore oil drilling.

Congressional action blocked drilling in the Atlantic off the U.S. But now under the Trump administration the push is on again. The New York State Legislature has just passed a bill prohibiting drilling in state coastal waters. But that’s only three nautical miles out. However, the measures bars development of infrastructure such as pipelines to service oil and gas drilling.

  A co-sponsor of the measure, State Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele, Jr. of Sag Harbor, says: “Tourism is a major economic driver for Long Island; we also have very viable commercial and recreational fishing industries. The proposal for offshore drilling threatens both our economy and our environment,” 

What has changed since I got that tip from the Montauk fisherman in 1970?

The U.S. is now awash in oil—why gasoline is being sold for a little over $2 a gallon. And the U.S. has become the world’s leading producer of oil and gas. This is largely due to hydraulic fracturing or fracking, also an extremely polluting technology, contaminating water supplies with 600 chemicals used for breaking apart underground shale formations for oil and gas. Further, fracking causes gas to migrate into water tables and then water with gas in it coming out of faucets and erupting in flames when lit with a match. Also, many of the 600 chemicals are cancer-causing. 

Climate change is now a crisis. Cities, counties and states—and overseas many nations—are pushing for 100 percent renewable energy in a few short years, and this can be accomplished. Vehicles powered by electricity, hydrogen, fuel cells and other clean sources are the future, not petroleum-powered vehicles. The burning of fossil fuel in cars, trucks and power plants is the leading cause of climate change, global warming.

Meanwhile, it still costs 10 times more to do offshore drilling than to drill for oil on-shore. Why spend billions for extracting oil and gas instead of further implementing clean, green, renewable sources? Renewables are worldwide the fastest-growing energy sources.

Moreover, the claim of the oil industry that it can safely drill for oil and gas offshore has been demonstrated to be baloney. It’s drill-baby-spill.  

An excellent essay on that was published this month on the Ocean Conservancy website (www.oceanconservancy.org): “What Have We Learned From 50 Years Of Offshore Oil Disasters?” is its headline, with a sub-head: “As oil spills get bigger, Congress’ responses have gotten smaller.” The article by Michael LeVine focuses on the Santa Barbara oil spill of 1969, the Exxon Valdez spill of 1989 and the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil drilling rig and the massive spill that followed in 2010 in the Gulf of Mexico, the worst oil spill in history, so far. There have been an enormous number of smaller spills.

These three big “spills evidence a clear and troubling pattern—a major offshore oil disaster occurs in the United States every two decades,” states the article. “Each spill is worse than the last, increasing from 3 million to 11 million to 210 million gallons spilled.”

Offshore oil drilling: regularly disastrous—and unnecessary.

Karl Grossman is a veteran investigative reporter and columnist, the winner of numerous awards for his work and a member of the L.I. Journalism Hall of Fame. He is a professor of journalism at SUNY/College at Old Westbury and the author of six books. 

Kings Park History - Howard Orphanage And Industrial School 1911-1918

Article is written for the Leo P. Ostebo Kings Park Heritage Museum 99 Old Dock Road Kings Park, NY 11754.

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From 1911-1918 the Howard Orphanage and Industrial School mortgaged farmland from the Jewish Industrial Aid Society, also known as Indian Head Stock Farm in Kings Park, NY located on Indian Head Road.  The school would teach African American orphaned children life skills, such as, reading, writing, sewing, cooking, woodcarving and more. 

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From 1911-1912 Mary Eliza Mahoney, was the director. She was the first African American Professional Nurse, a Boston Suffragette, as well as, one of the first women in Boston to vote after the passing of the 19th Amendment. 

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By 1912, the school was looked at as the Tuskegee of the North.  Through the years, there was fundraising to keep the orphanage going. Unfortunately, due to a lack of funding, during the winter of 1918 pipes at the school froze and many children suffered from the affects.

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To learn more about historic Kings Park, call 631-269-3305 for an appointment to visit the Leo P. Ostebo Kings Park Heritage Museum or goto www.KPHeritageMuseum.net.

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Article is written for the Leo P. Ostebo Kings Park Heritage Museum 99 Old Dock Road Kings Park, NY 11754.

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Beginning of the Orphanage at Kings Park

https://bklyn.newspapers.com/image/53949906/?terms=howard%2Borphan%2Bkings%2Bpark

Fundraiser for the Howard Orphanage

https://bklyn.newspapers.com/image/53950253/?terms=howard%2Borphan%2Bkings%2Bpark

Considered the Tusgegee of the North

https://bklyn.newspapers.com/image/54446264/?terms=howard%2Borphan%2Bkings%2Bpark%2Btuskegee%2Bof%2Bthe%2Bnorth

Orphanage Closed Newspaper Article

https://bklyn.newspapers.com/image/55298948/?terms=howard%2Borphan%2Bkings%2Bpark

SUFFOLK CLOSEUP - 'Silent Spring' A Fable For Tomorrow

SUFFOLK CLOSEUP

By Karl Grossman

Silent Spring by Rachel Carson, published in 1962, is acknowledged as instrumental in the creation of the modern environmental movement. What isn’t fully realized, however, is the role of Long Islanders—and a lawsuit with as its lead plaintiff the great environmentalist from Suffolk County, Robert Cushman Murphy, in helping inform Ms. Carson of the threat pesticides pose to life.

The title of Silent Spring is laid out in its introduction, “A Fable for Tomorrow.” It starts, “There was once a town in the heart of America where all life seemed to live in harmony with its surroundings. The town lay in the midst of a checkerboard of prosperous farms, with fields of grain and hillsides of orchards where, in spring, white clouds of bloom drifted above the green fields.” 

But, Ms. Carson writes “Then a strange blight crept over the area and everything began to change. Some evil spell had settled on the community: mysterious maladies swept the flocks of chicken, the cattle and sheep sickened and died. Everywhere was a shadow of death. The farmers spoke of much illness among their families. In the town the doctors had become more and more puzzled by new kinds of sickness appearing among their patients.”

“There was a strange stillness. The birds, for example—where had they gone?”

It was a silent spring. “No witchcraft, no enemy action had silenced the rebirth of new life in this stricken world,” states Ms. Carson. “The people had done it themselves.”

The special focus of Silent Spring is the super-deadly pesticide DDT which as a result of the book was banned in the United States.

In the 1950s, Marjorie Spock began teaching at the Waldorf School in Garden City and with a friend, Mary T. Richards, established a large garden at their home in Brookville. They grew food by the biodynamic method. This was particularly important for Ms. Richards who required a diet of organic produce because of her chemical sensitivities.

Then the U.S. government and the state conducted massive aerial spraying of DDT on Long Island to kill gypsy moths. The food in their garden was rendered contaminated for them and they sued. Other Long Islanders, including Mr. Murphy, of Old Field,  joined in litigation.

In 1958, a trial lasting over 22 days—referred to by the press as “The Long Island Spray Trial”—was held in federal court. There were 50 expert witnesses who testified about the dangers of DDT, 2,000 pages of testimony. The judge ruled for the government.

But “Murphy v. Benson” (the plaintiffs led by Mr. Murphy versus U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ezra Taft Benson and other officials) went to the U.S. Supreme Court to get the judge’s ruling overturned. They “lost the battle but won the war,” Ms. Spock later said as plaintiffs for the first time were given the right to enjoin the government to force it to provide a full scientific review prior to a proposed action affecting the environment.

Meanwhile, Ms. Spock conducted correspondence with Ms. Carson and advised her of the progress of the case and the evidence gathered. (Ms. Spock was a younger sister of famed “baby doctor” Benjamin Spock.) Between the “Long Island Spray Trial” and other information Ms. Carson was getting—notably about bird kills caused by DDT—the basis for Silent Spring was provided.

St. John’s University Professor Richard Hammond has called Mr. Murphy “a key figure in the fight against DDT.” He not only took the litigation path but formed Citizens Against Mass Poisoning. It was one of Mr. Murphy’s battles for the environment, internationally and on Long Island. Mr. Murphy, the Lamont Curator of birds at the American Museum of Natural History, authored Fish Shape Paumanok: Nature and Man on Long Island which I believe is the finest book on Long Island’s environment ever written. (I was fortunate to meet him in the early 1960s when I wrote extensively about the four-lane highway public works czar Robert Moses pushed to build on Fire Island and Mr. Murphy was among the leaders of those challenging and finally stopping the road in favor of a Fire Island National Seashore.) Paumanok is the native American name for Long Island.

I use Silent Spring as a text in the Environmental Journalism class that I’ve taught for decades. The assault on life by chemicals Ms. Carson wrote about is far from over. In Suffolk, the county long sprayed DDT with abandon but with it outlawed has gone to another problematic pesticide, methoprene, to kill mosquitoes.

Also, Ms. Carson was enormously concerned about the lethal dangers of nuclear technology warning about “the most dangerous materials that have existed in all of earth’s history, the by-products of atomic fission.” (She was diagnosed with breast cancer in the midst of writing Silent Spring and died in 1964.) Now, despite the atomic catastrophes at Three Mile Island, Chernobyl and Fukushima, the U.S. Congress just passed—by 361 to 10 in the House, a “voice vote” in the Senate—the “Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act” which seeks to revive and expand nuclear power in the U.S. And President Trump signed it. We still have very far to go.

Karl Grossman is a veteran investigative reporter and columnist, the winner of numerous awards for his work and a member of the L.I. Journalism Hall of Fame. He is a professor of journalism at SUNY/College at Old Westbury and the author of six books. 

NYS Police Investigating Hate Crime At Nissequogue River State Park

The New York State Police Troop L BCI, with the assistance of the State Police Hate Crimes Unit, are investigating the discovery of a swastika along the bike path at the Nissequogue River State Park in Kings Park, Suffolk County. Governor Cuomo directed the State Police to investigate the vandalism, which was discovered on Sunday, February 10.

Senator John Flanagan issued the following statement:

“Over the weekend, hate-filled anti-Semitic graffiti was discovered in the Nissequogue River State Park.  The message is deeply troubling to those who live in the Kings Park community and all who continue the fight against hatred.  I want to make it clear that all elected officials and community leaders are united in saying that hateful symbols must never be tolerated and those responsible must and will be held accountable for their actions.

While some may try to divide us, this nation was built to protect and respect our differences and we will stand stronger together in the face of those who look to divide us.  We must use this as another opportunity to become stronger.

Everyone has the right to live free of fear and oppression and those who feel otherwise have no place in our community.  That stands truer today than it ever has and those who test our resolve on this will find that they are the ones who are not welcome.”

State Police is asking anyone who may have any information about the vandalism to contact investigators at 631-756-3300.

Suffolk County Comptroller John Kennedy Announces Candidacy For County Executive

Suffolk County Comptroller John Kennedy announced his candidacy for Suffolk County ExecutiveSuffolk County Comptroller John Kennedy announcing his intention to challenge Steve Bellone in November. earlier today. Kennedy is the second Republican, (Legislator Rob Trotta announced his decision to challenge Bellone last week) to announce plans to challenge Steve Bellone for the office.

Calling his wife, Suffolk County Legislator Leslie Kennedy, to stand along side of him he stated his reason for running, “We want this place, Suffolk County, to be a place for our children and for our eight grand children. It’s about saying enough is enough we will stop the hemorrhaging, we will stop the bleeding, we will cut up the credit cards we will start to pay our debts and restore pride to Suffolk County that’s what this is about.”

He warned his supporters, “It won’t be easy and it won’t happen over night. But, by rolling up our sleeves and going in to each county department, just as we did with our merger here we will emerge better, leaner and faster in delivering service to those in county government with what they expect and need.”

Pointing to a poster which he called the Steve Bellone report card, Kennedy said,  “The only thing missing from this is on the bottom is a big fat red F. That’s what seven downgrades lead you to, an executive who deserves an F. We’ll turn it around, we’ll raise it step by step with the hard work and we’ll get it back to black ladies and gentleman.”