NYC recycling center crop dusting neighborhood with 'choking' stink that has state fuming: 'Literally gag'
Share and Follow

A Long Island City asphalt recycling plant is spraying a “choking” stink along the Newtown Creek — leaving state regulators fuming and residents plugging their noses.

State regulators first raised a stink about the noxious fumes from Green Asphalt back in January 2024, when the company was accused of spewing emissions that “unreasonably interfered with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property” in violation of the New York State Air Pollution Control Law.

But locals said take a whiff of the air along the Newtown Creek and the chemical odor has only gotten worse since then.

“At first it was a choking smell – I’m talking about how you would literally gag when you go outside,” said Tom Mituzas, a longtime resident of the Blissville section of the neighborhood and member of the Blissville Civic Organization.

“Your eyes would tear because the smokestacks are so low,” Mituzas said of the plant, which opened in 2011. “The smoke would stay at street level, and you’d go out of your house and you’d breathe [fumes] in, and you’d just choke.”

The resident told The Post he moved his 95-year-old aunt from her childhood home last summer because he was afraid “she was going to die in the house” due to the fumes that seep indoors.

The state Department of Environmental Conservation has continued to receive “numerous” complaints about the odor — and its potential health effects, officials wrote in a letter to the plant Wednesday.

“The department has continued to regularly receive numerous community complaints and inquiries regarding both the odor emanating from the facility and potential human health implications associated with emissions from the facility,” the DEC wrote in a letter issued to the plant Wednesday.

Regulators are now demanding the plant increase the height of its smokestacks from 45 feet to 90 feet by Dec. 11, its letter showed. The company will also have to test for air contaminants and an elemental analysis of the recycled asphalt materials it handles.

A rep for Green Asphalt told The Post it has been “working diligently to address any odor complaints” and strives to be in “good standing with the community as we have over the last 14 years, and we continue to engage with local stakeholders in Greenpoint and Long Island City to resolve this as soon as possible.”

Asphalt fumes can cause serious injury and permanent damage, including throat irritation, cough, fatigue and skin cancer, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Green Asphalt in Long Island City once touted a $50,0000 sub-contract with the DOT and has helped pave major Big Apple roadways like the Whitestone Expressway. It recycles asphalt to be used in city sustainability projects, and brands itself as the first 100% recycled asphalt plant in Gotham.

The DOT stopped asphalt recycling operations with Green Asphalt “around the time” the January 2024 violation was issued and has been waiting for a “corrective plan before allowing operations to resume,” City Council member Julie Won’s office told residents in an email shared with The Post.

Won told The Post she and state pols are now working to make sure the DEC regularly tests air quality near the plant site, as well as enforces state environmental regulations “appropriately to improve the situation.” 

Share and Follow
You May Also Like
Trump aide Stephen Miller gets called 'the face of evil' by his cousin

Stephen Miller, Trump’s aide, labeled ‘the face of evil’ by his cousin

Stephen Miller, an advisor to Trump, was labeled ‘the face of evil’…
FILE - President Donald Trump speaks during an event to announce new tariffs, April 2, 2025, in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)

Trump claims the US has gained $17 trillion in new investments, but the actual figure is probably lower.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The economic boom promised by President Donald Trump centers…
Blizzard traps hundreds of hikers on Mount Everest

Snowstorm Strands Numerous Hikers on Mount Everest

IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site…
Chicago police ordered to ignore border patrol agents' plea for help while surrounded by angry mob of protesters

Chicago Police Instructed to Stand Down as Protesters Confront Border Patrol Agents

Chicago police officers, who were on their way to assist federal agents…
Trump blasts judge for blocking use of National Guard

Trump Criticizes Judge’s Decision to Halt National Guard Deployment

IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site…
Connor Zilisch continues Xfinity Series domination at Charlotte Motor Speedway

Connor Zilisch Maintains Xfinity Series Supremacy at Charlotte Motor Speedway

(NEXSTAR) — It was a good night in Charlotte if you had…
Chicago police ordered not to respond after car-ramming attack on federal agents: sources

Chicago police sources blast department’s response after officers were told not to help fed agents: ‘Cover their a–‘

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Two longtime, ranking Chicago…
Trump aloof as lawmakers fear protracted shutdown

Trump Remains Detached Amidst Lawmakers’ Concerns Over Lengthy Shutdown

President Trump, whom Democrats say is the only Republican leader who can…