Independent Consultant's Review Gives MCSM Air Quality a Thumbs Up

Thanks to a $5,000 legislative grant from State Senator Jose Serrano, NY Lawyers for the Public Interest (NYLPI) has engaged Peter M. Strauss & Associates on behalf of MCSM parents (with the approval of the Parent Association) to review as independent consultants the December 2007 and February 2008 air quality test data previously reported on by Con Edison and the NYS Department of Health (DOH). In a memo dated June 23, 2008, Mr. Strauss reported the qualified good news that, in his judgment based on the data collected by Con Edison and the DOE, “there is not an immediate hazard to health.”

While parents, students, and teachers can breathe easier based on Mr. Strauss’s review, his evaluation is not without concerns. To begin with, he noted that, “While there is not immediate risk to occupants of the school, these data do signify the sad state of the air we breathe, both indoors and out of doors.” He continued by noting that Con Edison’s tentative plans to install a sub-slab depressurization system rather than removing the contaminants means that, “inspections and air monitoring should take place so long as the building is occupied.” Unlike previous presentations from Con Edison and the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), Mr. Strauss also expressed concern about the presence of coal tars spreading from under the building out below the school grounds and beneath the Harlem River. This will likely be the subject of further discussion in the coming months.

The Parent Association anticipates that Mr. Strauss will provide further comment on Con Edison’s plans once they have released their formal remediation analysis and recommendations in September or October. His June 23, 2008 memo will be made available to all MCSM parents at the September 9 PA meeting or upon request from any interested parent. A copy of this memo is also available for downloading from this website by clicking on the “Information for MCSM Parents” link.