From Trash to Treasure | Freshkills Park

At 2,200 acres, Freshkills Park will be almost three times the size of Central Park and the largest park developed in New York City in over 100 years. The transformation of what was formerly the world’s largest garbage dump landfill into a productive and beautiful cultural destination will make the park a symbol of renewal and an expression of how our society can restore balance to its landscape.

In addition to providing a wide range of recreational opportunities, including many uncommon in the city, the park’s design, ecological restoration and cultural and educational programming will emphasize environmental sustainability and a renewed public concern for our human impact on the earth.

While the full build–out will continue in phases for the next 30 years, development over the next several years will focus on providing public access to the interior of the site and showcasing its unusual combination of natural and engineered beauty, including creeks, wetlands, expansive meadows and spectacular vistas of the New York City region.

 With the help of advanced landfill gas collection infrastructure throughout the landfill, the Department of Sanitation is already actively harvesting methane from the decomposing waste buried at Fresh Kills. This methane, enough to heat approximately 22,000 homes, is sold to National Grid and the city generates approximately $12 million in annual revenue from the sale of that gas.

Gas recovery and sale will continue until the amount of gas produced by the landfill is small enough as to no longer be economically viable, at which point it will be burned off at flare stations onsite.

While maintaining the objective of minimizing energy consumption within new buildings and infrastructure systems onsite, DPR is also committed to building upon Sanitation's precedent in using emerging energy technologies to supply as much of the park's energy as possible.

This commitment could include photovoltaic cells and wind turbines, using solar thermal cells in water heating systems, geothermal heating and cooling, and abiding green building principles.The City is also exploring opportunities to complement park development with demonstration space for newer renewable energy technologies.

 source/credits: nyc.gov, City of New York Parks and Recreation