On September 4, Riverkeeper and New York City Councilman Eric Gioia (D-Queens), Chair of the City Council Committee on Oversight and Investigations, announced legal action against NYCON Supply Corporation, a major concrete manufacturer on Newtown Creek, for violations of federal environmental laws. They are alleging that NYCON been illegally discharging concrete waste without a permit into a tributary of the heavily polluted Newtown Creek, in violation of both the Clean Water Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).

In response to a formal request by Congressional Representatives Weiner, Velazquez, Solis, and Green, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will study contamination in and around Newtown Creek, which could result in its being designated a Superfund site. Riverkeeper, which is working with local communities and elected officials to ensure a comprehensive cleanup of Newtown Creek, welcomes EPA’s involvement. EPA will examine existing information from ongoing environmental investigations on the creek, and determine if the contamination warrants additional studying and sampling under the Superfund law.

On July 29, Food & Water Watch and Riverkeeper launched their Take Back the Tap – New York campaign to urge NYC restaurants to stop serving bottled water.