Mysterious Presence on the Waterfront

This morning, a reader sent Gossips this picture of a strangely equipped barge tied up in one of the slips at riverfront park.

Curious, Gossips consulted DPW superintendent Rob Perry, who explained that it was there "taking samples of the river bottom in preparation for the 2014 remediation." 

This is the project we learned about back in February 2012--the underwater remediation of the coal tar that lingers from the 19th-century Hudson Gasification Works. Phase 1--the upland remediation--was done in 2004. Phase 2 was expected to start this fall, but it seems from Perry's comment that it has been postponed until next year.
COPYRIGHT 2013 CAROLE OSTERINK
Photo credits: Robert Mechling and Peter Jung