To Councilmember Daneek Miller and Councilmember Adrienne Adams,

As residents and members of the faith community of Southeast Queens, we write to you regarding the Waste Equity Legislation Intro 157.

Southeast Queens is among the most overburdened districts by waste facilities and the related diesel truck pollution in the city, along with North Brooklyn and the South Bronx. In a 2017 community air quality & truck monitoring study, volunteers recorded up to 80 private waste trucks per hour at the intersection of Merrick Blvd. and Liberty Ave. Volunteers also measured ground-level, asthma-inducing PM2.5 concentrations up to 3x higher than the average for the area at the park across from Royal Waste Services.

The problem is getting worse. In 2017 the Queens 12 average tonnage increased, bringing hundreds of truck trips in and out of the community from private haulers every day. This increase in tonnage also brings more long-haul, diesel export trucks, increasing emissions from idling and export, wearing down local streets, and posing a safety hazard. And in March 2018, a five-alarm fire broke out at Royal Waste Services, spewing even more pollution than usual into the neighborhood. Royal also has one of the worst truck safety records in NYC, with 10 crashes in the past 2 years, and 100% of the trucks that were inspected by DOT being ordered out of service for safety violations.

Intro 157 (2018) is long-overdue legislation that reduces the amount of garbage permitted in the most overburdened communities in the city – including SE Queens – while capping the amount of garbage that can be processed in all the other community districts in the city.

The bill protects overburdened low-income communities of color from receiving any more trash. The bill also incentivizes transfer stations to recycle more, which provides an opportunity to create more and better jobs. And the bill will help improve air quality by encouraging use of barge and rail transport for moving the trash out of the city, as opposed to more diesel long-haul trucks.

We urge Councilmember Miller and Councilmember Adams to list their names as co-sponsors of Intro 157 immediately. Please sign this petition supporting Waste Equity Bill Intro 157! Help us reach 250 signatures by Friday April 20th by sharing this link with friends, family and neighbors throughout Southeast Queens.