You are reading

Peralta urges Cuomo to sign bill requiring MTA to monitor lead paint levels

July 18, 2017 By Jason Cohen

The sponsors of a bill that would require the MTA to monitor the lead paint levels along the elevated subway lines are urging Governor Cuomo to sign their legislation into law.

The legislation, sponsored by State Senator Jose Peralta (D-Jackson Heights) in the Senate and Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz (D-Bronx) in the Assembly, passed both chambers last month and is now in the hands of the governor to sign into law.

“This is about protecting New Yorkers and ensuring their safety,” Peralta said. “High levels of lead paint in chips falling onto the streets and sidewalk endanger the lives of neighbors, visitors, shoppers, and commuters. It is my hope the Governor signs this bill into law in order to solve these dangerous situations.”

If the legislation becomes law, the MTA would be required to study the lead levels along the subway lines. The study would have to be done in cooperation with the Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Health.

The MTA would then be required to recommend measures to eliminate it if the lead levels are high. The agency would also be required to present its findings to the governor, mayor and leaders of the state senate and assembly.

“By eliminating and evaluating this dangerous problem, the MTA can take a good first step in making sure our subway system is safe for everyone,” Peralta said. “In the heart of my district, the 7 Train runs above Roosevelt Avenue, a crowded area full of shops, restaurants and street vendors, so it is important we protect everyone from these falling paint chips containing high levels of lead.”

A recent report by the District Council 9 International Union of Painters and Allied Trades revealed that paint chips falling from the 52nd Street 7 train station were found to contain lead amounts of 244,000 parts per million, which is equivalent to about 50 times in excess of the legal requirements for lead.

email the author: news@queenspost.com
No comments yet

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

Hollis man charged with raping 14-year-old told teen, ‘I can help you get work’

New details have emerged in the case of the Hollis man accused luring a 14-year-old boy into his car in St. Albans and then allegedly raping him on the afternoon of Tuesday, July 1.

Virgilio Taveras, 63, of Hillside Avenue, was arrested by detectives from the Queens Special Victims Squad two days later and booked at the 107th Precinct in Fresh Meadows. Taveras was arraigned on the Fourth of July in Queens Criminal Court on a complaint charging him with rape in the second degree, luring a child as an E felony, endangering the welfare of a child and other related crimes.

Man in his 50s sought for exposing himself to 13-year-old on E train in Forest Hills: NYPD

Police from the 112th Precinct in Forest Hills and Transit District 20 are looking for a suspect who allegedly flashed a 13-year-old girl on a Queens subway train last month.

The victim was riding a southbound E train approaching the Kew Gardens-Union Turnpike station at around 1 p.m. on Monday, June 30, when she saw a stranger exposing himself to her, police said Wednesday. The perpetrator ran off the train at the Kew Gardens-Union Turnpike station and fled in an unknown direction. The youngster was not injured during her encounter with the stranger.