Killer NYC Waterfalls Claim More Victims!

How many trees have to die before someone does something about Olafur Eliasson’s waterfalls? Earlier this month the Parks Department and the Public Art Fund admitted that the salty East River spray from the Brooklyn Bridge waterfall was making the leaves on trees at the River Cafe in DUMBO go prematurely brown. Now the Brooklyn Paper reports that the trees at the Brooklyn Heights Promenade are suffering from the same affliction, brought on by the salt slowing photosynthesis. Officials have assured tree-huggers that the spray from what BP calls Eliasson's "four-headed killing machine" doesn't pose any "long-term danger," but the way things are going, it's only a matter of time before some Earth First! activists start climbing up the falls to try and hang protest banners.

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By John Del Signore in News on August 21, 2008 1:13 PM

Comments [rss]

Reflect

stop wasting money on frivlous things. People are hungry and lost in the streets!

Toby von Meistersinger

It is still off today.

Anyway the Public Art Fund would have been better off spending the money to put art in public schools instead of this garbage which isn't even art.

Spirit of 76

Why, thank you. Nice to know I'm not forgotten. My guess would be that you've already guzzled enough of that water to prove it's safe for me.

Rfive

I'm with jenspellnogood. Could we spray some of that water in williamsburgh? or at least on Spiritof76?

annieuro

That's a really REALLY creepy looking leaf.

kearnj

If trees are growing near the river, chances are they can take the excess in salt. After all, it's natural right?

Pull My Finger

if you sprinkel some of that water on yourself will you get super powers and be able to shoot webs out of your ass and crazy shit like that?

zodak

this is the last place i expected to find someone complaining about hipsters but #13 found a way to do it.

jenspellnogood

can we re-direct the spray so that it encompasses all of brooklyn, hopefully killing off the spread of hipsters?

Amanda Harletsch

How is the water conected to the trees? I don't get the connection besides the water element...

TN

I hope there's no permanent damage to the trees. They make the promenade a nice place to spend your afternoon watching the view.

mocanlagunas

stop bitching about how much it cost. Did you pay for it?

The one on Governors Island shuts off automatically if there's too much wind, I don't know about the others... at least that's what they told me.

And yes, the trees are turning brown prematurely. The Ginkgos outside my apt. are turning brown also, and they're way far from the waterfalls. Probably next year they'll be alright, so who cares? Bitching, bitching, bitching... well, I'm bitching about the bitching, so I guess I should just STFU...

zodak

on monday it was off.

Gothamist_Cynic

Why are we blaming an art installation and not the poor quality of the water in the east river????

because they're spewing the crappy water from the east river.

JRod5417

The Waterfalls are pretty underwhelming. I say its time to dismantle them.

BigRed

The waterfalls are a huge $15 million waste of money. I can see natural waterfalls that cost nothing to build and maintain. Big deal!

Spend that money on something more worthwhile next time, like helping the homeless.

miked1116

I agree with no_comment!

Why are we blaming an art installation and not the poor quality of the water in the east river????

no_comment

I think the bigger issue is, "what's in that East River water that's making leaves turn so brown so quickly!" You KNOW it's not just salt.

Gregoire

The last two times I even went to look at the Brooklyn Bridge falls, they were off. Is it because of this tree problem?

drewo

But Mayor Bloomie predicted tourists would flock to New York City just to see these waterfalls! Like they did with the Gates a few years ago!

I have a feeling the tourist draw is not quite so great.