The feds will conduct a study of Newtown Creek to see if the public is at risk from a 17 million gallon underground oil spill there nearly three decades ago, officials said yesterday.
Word of the study, pushed by Brooklyn Reps. Anthony Weiner and Nydia Velázquez, came a month after elevated levels of cancer-causing benzene and potentially explosive methane gas were found near residences in Greenpoint, adjacent to the creek.
The Environmental Protection Agency will analyze soil and groundwater in the vicinity of the spill.
It also will check how far contaminants from the spill have spread into New York Harbor, and whether ExxonMobil is using the most effective methods to clean up its mess.