A bill signed by President Obama Tuesday allows for the construction and operation of natural gas pipeline facilities in the New York portion of the Gateway National Recreation Center, a 26,600-acre National Recreation Area in the Port of New York and New Jersey. HR 2606, which was introduced last year by three congressman representing Brooklyn and Queens — Republicans Michael Grimm and Robert Turner, and Democrat Gregory Meeks — was approved by the House and Senate earlier this year. The legislation will allow a new pipeline to be built off of an existing Williams pipeline to replace a 40-60 year old pipe and bring natural gas from New Jersey to Long Island. The pipeline will pass under Jacob Riis Park in the Rockaways portion of Queens and under Jamaica Bay to a new meter and regulator station on Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn. The project would generate an estimated $265 million on construction activity and 300 construction jobs, according to Grimm.

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