Author: Lacey (Page 2 of 6)

Conclusion

During my research of the emergence of flooding in New York City (NYC) I learned that flooding is a byproduct of years or even decades of man-made pollution, urbanization, over population and it cannot be escaped. The conversation is not future tense, it is present tense, and we are in the thick of it. We may not solely be responsible for the flooding we as experiencing but we need to be the solution for our future generations if they are to enjoy life in this city and in this world by extension. During my research it was a new discovery to learn just how drastic the coastal flooding and sea level rising is affecting communities right here in NYC. Also, the difficulties they experience on a regular basis doing everyday task like going to work and school. I believe this is important for New Yorkers to learn because not only are we losing coastal lands, but this magnifies the problem of global warming and will make them aware of just how much increased water in our seas and the atmosphere resulting in these sudden drastic storms and hurricanes. This information will also awaken them to the reality of how this problem is upon us and we have to find solutions.
Environmentalists said that Manhattan is sinking, and this is a fact, but this isn’t the best way to explain it however it is the truth. Since the 1970’s we lost more than a foot of coastal land around Manhattan and within the next three decades we will lose more than six feet again. This stood out to me in my research because I work and attend school around Manhattan, and it is thought of one of the world’s best cosmopolitan cities. How will we survive everyday life here if flooding becomes more frequent and unpredictable? My research has shown me that many people are treating the problem of climate change as a kind of lasa fair issue that probably doesn’t even exist to some. As a result, my target audience is my fellow college students and I choose this group of people because I believe they have great power to influence others like their peers, families and community. College students are tomorrow’s leaders and if we have a group of tomorrow’s leaders in every area of study and in the future every sector of the labor force, who is aware of the climate change problems facing us now maybe one day we will have leaders who will really work together to make an impactful change.

Source Entry 2

Danielle Cruz. “NYC Communities Battle Flooding but Not from Coastal Storms.pdf”. Accessed 10/12/2023.

Summary and Representative Quotes
For my second source entry I have chosen an article that was written by Danielle Cruz, who is a graduate school student from Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism in Fall of 2020. I found this article on the City Tech library resources under CUNY Academic Works. Danielle’s main purpose was to educate the readers about the problem of coastal flooding facing coastal communities in the Hamilton Beach, Howard Beach and Jamaica Bay in NYC. She explained the phenomena of ‘sunny day flooding’ which is when the ocean water rises in the absence of a storm and floods into nearby coastal communities. References were made to residents who stated that on a normal sunny day they could suddenly experience eight inches of water in front of their house or their block which they say is difficult to get used too. The argument was also put forward that the mayor’s office has given little to no attention to the problem of coastal flooding. Instead, she purported that the government has only focused on flooding caused by storm surges. Resident’s way of life in these communities have been completely altered because they experience the extreme coastal flooding in and around their homes at least twice for the month.

Reflection and Rhetoric Analysis
This article written by Danielle Cruz brought to life the problem of coastal flooding in a few New York City communities and the magnitude to which it is affecting people living in these coastal areas. After everyone in the city has dealt with the flooding, the clean-up has happened, the subways resumed service, and everyone is back to work and school, the coastal communities take much longer to return to a normal way of life. The coastal flooding can take up to 48 hours to clear, forcing the residents to miss school and work because the major roads are flooded and impassable. What can be done to prevent extreme flooding in coastal communities? The answer is not clear, but this is their home, and most people don’t have the resources to relocate so they are left at the mercy of the authorities whether government and municipalities to create and enforce a plan to preserve their homes. I mentioned earlier that New York City’s aged sewer system can no longer keep up with the excess water when there is heavy rainfall and there is an even bigger unhygienic problem of stormwater mixed with wastewater gushing true the streets, subways and in and around resident’s properties. This is contaminated flood water that enters homes and buildings which typically causes the problem of mold and bacteria resulting in allergies and asthma, infections, and gastrointestinal illnesses. Some initiatives implemented in the Howard Beach and Hamilton Beach areas was the upgrade of the drainage system which included new storm sewers and catch basins in Brooklyn and Southeast Queens. One noted improvement was the implementation of bioswales which are rain gardens. These are built into sidewalks and are designed to absorb up to 2500 gallons of storm water. The bioswales are about five feet deep and are built using plants that absorb a lot of water as well as use spaces within the soil and stone to hold stormwater. Are these bioswales enough to curb the flooding? Probably no, but it is a great effort to trap the flood water and allow it to slowly drain of. The street raising projects which allow the cars to be above the water during high tide was another initiative that was implemented. But this did not protect the residents and their homes from the storm surges or the high tides completely. Programs like ‘build it back’ after hurricane Sandy was meant to reinforce the homes and make them stormproof but this program failed among some of the reasons for this was poor management and more than half the residences did not qualify for the grants. More homeowners in these coastal regions are being required to have flood insurance for their homes but flood insurance is astronomically expensive. Flood insurance is typically provided by Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) or National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) who charge the residence premiums that is approximately $700 and in NYC the average premiums $1150.00 which is nearly impossible for the household to afford.

Third Source Entry
Andrew Falzone. “The Effects of Climate Change in New York City”. CUNY TV Special. Accessed 10/19/2023.
Summary and Representative Quotes

The genre of my third source entry is a documentary produced by CUNY TV Special which I found on YouTube. The presenter Andrew Falzone started the documentary by stating that research shows ocean currents are shifting, global sea levels are rising which means more coastal flooding storm surges, erosion and property damage. As the temperature in the atmosphere and the oceans increase the rainfall increases resulting in more floods and droughts. In this documentary, scientists say that for each degree Celsius the air heats up it holds 7% more moisture which leads to exponentially heavier rains during storms and made worse by human caused warming (the burning of fossil fuels). The average temperature has increased in NYC since 1970 and continues to increase. Thereby forcing organizations like the MTA to come up with initiatives to try to prevent the flooding of the underground subway system while dealing with the old infrastructure. The reasons why to feel a little bit safer as a resident in NYC were explored and the organizations that are working avidly to make an impact were listed. More examples of how residents’ lives were dismantled as a result of the flooding from hurricane Ida and their challenge to return to a normal life were highlighted. Mitigating factors like the implementations of bioswales and blue belts were also explained in depth. For example, on Staten Island, there is over 90 new manmade wetlands called blue belts that have been constructed with the hopes of 20 more soon. There is astounding evidence to prove theses manmade wetland have saved many communities from flooding after heavy rainfall.

Reflection and Rhetoric Analysis

A survey was conducted during this documentary to get a sense of what New Yorkers worry about concerning the increased flooding. Someone said they worry about the subway system, another stated that climate change is upon us and some else wondered if New York is still safe to live for them, their children, and grandchildren. It is a fact that climate change is upon us but my question to these people would be what changes you have made in your life to help reduce your carbon emissions because this is a joint effort, everyone is responsible for creating a better world for future our generations. As it pertains to public transport, the MTA invented a fabric based waterproof gate that can be placed at the top of the subway entrances to prevent the flood water from going down into the subways however this was a failure because they lacked data of future storms, exactly when the subways will flood, and which ones will flood. I thought of this as a plaster on a wound, a temporary fix because even if they invented a way to keep the water out of the subways the flood water will remain on the surface and more buildings will flood which is what we are trying to prevent. Therefore, there must be a more holistic look at how to protect all these important infrastructures and the lives of all New Yorkers, things can’t be looked at in isolation. Professor Deborah Balk, Co-Chair New York City panel on Climate Change, responded to the question, if it is safe to live in New York now and her response was “there is nowhere safer, climate change is happening but, on the upside, NYC has been paying attention to climate change for more than a decade.” She listed agencies and government institutions like the New York Panel on Climate change, Mayor’s Office of Climate Resiliency, assessments by the State and the alignment of NYC with the Paris Climate Agreement in collaboration with NYC businesses who are established and active institutions fighting climate change in NYC. Scientists say by 2100 there will be an additional six feet of sea level rise on the coastal areas of NYC. What are we doing right now, is it enough to prevent this prediction from happening or to even slow it down?
Mr. Dadaq is an arranger of a children’s orchestra in Queens. His basement studio was flooded when the storm surges of hurricane Ida hit. He lost loss numerous irreplaceable instruments, musical compositions and electronic equipment and it took months to clean. Eventually, Mr. Dadaq reopened the children orchestra and expressed his trauma he experiences even now when he hears of impending rainy weather, and this also mirrors the feeling of many New Yorkers that is scared of the thought of rain but willing to push true whatever disaster to return to our precious way of life. Finally, in a report from Craig Thompson he mentioned, in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida, that there are a few tree pits (this is similar to bioswales) in Queens and throughout the city but it is not near enough to deal with a similar amount of water again. I wonder just how much tree pits is needed to trap the excess storm flood waters in NYC? There must be a commitment to more green and grey infrastructure, Thompson stated. The wetland plants in these bioswales create a system to store the flood water during a storm which comes from the storm sewers. This flood water is also treated as well. This has become a permanent form of drainage for the communities in Staten Island and has proven success for more than twenty years. The grey infrastructure includes sewers, pipes, tanks and dams. The NYC sewer system is over 100 years old and to fit the needs of the city it must be revamped or recreated for the demands today.