The southern end of Hunter’s Point South Park borders Newtown Creek, a 3.5-mile long tributary of the East River that partially separates the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens. The boat launch in Hunter’s Point South Park is one of three public access points to Newtown Creek, and the first one in Queens. The Creek was one of the most heavily used bodies of water in the region and is now one of the most polluted industrial sites in the United States. Dutch and English colonizers utilized the Creek for industrial commerce as early as the 17th Century, making it the oldest continual industrial area in the US. Prior to the colonization of the region, Native Americans lived along the Creek and used it for agricultural purposes. Before the development of industry along the Creek, the water was lined with marsh, wetlands and additional estuaries. Pre-industrialization the Creek was wider and longer, there were even two islands in the middle of the Creek; Mussel Island, an uninhabited patch of marshland was named for the sizable population of mussels that once thrived in the Creek, and Furman Island, which is now fused into Queens.
The wetlands and marshes lining Newtown Creek were wiped out with the development of industry along the waterway. The Creek was soon reduced to a single-source waterway; its estuaries having been sealed off by developers. The lack of water circulation and vegetation lead to extensive accumulation of pollutants in the Creek. Eventually oxygen levels were so low the Creek could no longer support aquatic life during much of the 20th Century.
In 1950 a reinforced concrete sewer exploded, causing oil to spill into Newtown Creek. The extent of the spill went unknown until 1978, when discoveries of oil leakage lead to the eventual realization that up to 30 million gallons of oil had leaked into the Creek. In addition to spilled oil, the landscape contains years of discarded toxins, raw sewage from New York City’s sewer system and other accumulated waste and contaminates from 1,491 different polluting sites. However, it wasn’t until 2010 that the EPA declared Newtown Creek a “superfund site” making it eligible for federal funds toward cleanup efforts. Although official clean-up of the site has yet to take place, organizations such as the Newtown Creek Alliance have led remediation efforts of their own. For more information on NCA’s programs, check out their website.