“For our Cool Streets program, we were flooded with applications to help design carbon-free alternatives to fight summer heat. One team of urban designers were inspired by the oysters that defined New York's past (and future) to provide public seating with a bench in the form of a gabion - the wire cages filled with oyster shells our partners the Billion Oyster Project is using to build new living reefs in New York Harbor. What a nightmare to get the oyster shells they offered us from Governor's Island to Red Hook, which is literally a stone's throw away across Buttermilk Channel. We'd have to have rented a UHaul, bought a dozen buckets, taken two ferries and driven 30 miles, all of which would have taken four of us most of a day. The carbon footprint of that expedition alone almost killed the idea.
Amazingly, Apollonia came to the rescue, and with a few coordinating phone calls and some hard work on the part of Sam and his crew, a giant load of oyster shells (enough for several benches) docked right at our floating climate lab in the making at GBX, Gowanus Bay Terminal, on the edge of industry in Red Hook, Brooklyn. The benches will be equipped with solar panels for shade and free phone charging, and serve as our new entrance straight off Columbia Street. Local schools will soon be coming for open-air classes on climate adaptation, circular economies, and learn how reimagining industry can serve up social justice and environmental benefits. We look forward to Apollonia docking again soon and helping us make our dream of a carbon positive port in South Brooklyn a reality. “
Tim, Reti Center
Sail freight is generally slower than the alternatives, but not always. While in Brooklyn August 21st the Schooner Apollonia moved some oyster shells from Governors Island to Red Hook. The shells came from Billion Oyster Project, a project dedicated to restoring oyster reefs to New York Harbor through public education initiatives and were bound for a community project with RETI Center.
