Brooklyn
With 2.5 million residents, Brooklyn is by far New York's most populous borough. Prior to consolidation in 1898, Brooklyn was an independent and thriving city. Today, while technically part of New York City, Brooklyn maintains an identity of cultural diversity, distinct neighborhoods, and architectural heritage. One of the earliest reasons for the establishment of Brooklyn is the unique waterfront access to both Manhattan and New Jersey. This necessitated the building of many different shipyards are related infrastructure for the shipping industry including rail lines and power facilities. These industries were the foundations of the Brooklyn economy as the city grew and prospered. Unfortunately, each of these industries is particularly prone to use of asbestos containing materials and all of them used asbestos as a primary material up until its health risks became apparent in the last quarter century.
Power Plants
With downtown Manhattan across the river, it is natural that Brooklyn would become a further extension of the growing New York City when the two were consolidated in 1898. However, prior to that time, Brooklyn operated as an independent city, with its own municipal infrastructure. One of the reasons for integration was the growth of shared utilities between the two entities. One of the growing utilities at the time was Con Edison, which was in the process of providing electric, steam, and gas utilities to much of downstate New York. Today, Con Edison still operates one of the largest investor owned energy companies in the United States.
Brooklyn is known for its quaint and historic neighborhoods. These were the homes of working class New York. While much of the area has been renovated and improved, the borough still somehow maintains its neighborhood charm in an area of 2.5 million residents. Part of this is the sustainability of the boroughs architecture and infrastructure. Some of the older infrastructure that is still in place is the borough's utility services, some of which are the original electrical or steam installations. These installations have the potential to be quite dangerous if not renovated or if they are repaired. One of the more important materials used when these installations were implemented is asbestos. Asbestos could be used to coat any fixture that required insulation or resistance to heat transfer. Temperature stability is an important as aspect of utility fixtures so asbestos was used extensively. Around 1980, the health complications due to asbestos exposure became too loud to ignore and its dangers became readily known to most Americans. While asbestos is no longer used in utility fixtures, most still contain the original asbestos applied to them when first constructed. Recent events involving Con Edison steam pipe ruptures in Manhattan have left many New Yorkers rightfully worried, including those in Brooklyn. When those steam pipes, installed in 1924, ruptured they released scalding mixtures of mud and asbestos into the air, necessitating the evacuation of thousands of residents. It is important to be aware of what utility installations around you may contain asbestos and to request its proper removal. It is also important to know your rights if you were employed by a company that dealt with asbestos extensively, such as Con Edison. Sustained exposure over many years can have serious health consequences of which you should be aware.
Rail Lines
The borough of Brooklyn is serviced by the Metro North rail service that also operates the Manhattan and Bronx subways, as well as the Long Island Railroad. It is important part of every resident of Brooklyn, including those who frequent the railway for access to Manhattan and other areas of the city. Many depend on the subway and rail lines to get to their places of employment in other parts of the city. In addition, several are employed by the rail itself, making it an integral part of the Brooklyn and overall downstate economy.
Many residents of Brooklyn, who are employed by rail lines, face dangerous circumstances at their jobs each day. Anytime there is human interaction with extremely high voltage circuits and moving trains, there is certain to be an element of danger. Unfortunately, many who service these lines may not even be aware about potentially the most dangerous circumstance of any. This is the exposure to toxic materials. One toxic material which is commonly found in older railroad and subway installations is asbestos. In the subway lines and in the enormous terminals, asbestos can be found nearly anywhere, though not always in a dangerous capacity. Asbestos was used for a myriad of different reasons in rail line construction and maintenance, but its most popular utilization was that of an insulator for fixtures. Asbestos was coated and sprayed over almost anything to make that material more resistant to temperature fluctuation and heat transfer. On electrical fixtures among subway lines and on steam exhaust systems for larger terminals, asbestos permeated railroad environments. Those who repaired or serviced these fixtures may have been exposed to asbestos without even being aware of it, as has been the case in some Manhattan rail terminals. Exposure to these materials leaves the potential for harmful inhalation of asbestos fibers, which are known to cause respiratory complications including certain types of lung cancers.
Shipbuilding
Shipyards were an essential aspect of the Brooklyn economy when the community was established. The New York harbor across the river combined with Brooklyn's waterfront provided an essential cog in establishing New York as the shipping capital of the world prior to 1900.
These shipyards continued to operate until the middle of the 20th century when most of them were decommissioned from wartime production or otherwise now-defunct operations. Some, such as the Brooklyn Navy Yard, employed thousands of people in their heyday. It is possible that during this period some of their workers may have been exposed to harmful toxins that were a daily reality in the world of shipbuilding. Asbestos was one of the most common toxins found in shipbuilding. It was used for any number of purposes in vessel construction, including boiler, electrical, or other piping fixtures. While repairing or installing asbestos-laden fixtures, thousands of workers may have been exposed to the known human carcinogen.
Last modified: December 28, 2010.
