New York, NY —

City councilmembers say a construction company has been using New York Harbor as a dumping ground for old barges, and they're proposing legislation requiring companies to register and label their barges.

An investigation by Brooklyn Councilman David Yassky found 180 abandoned barges in the city's waters including four from the company, Pile Foundation. Queens Councilman Eric Gioia says Pile has been exploiting the city's lack of oversight on barges, and its waterways.

GIOIA: New York has about 630 miles of coast line, what this company seems to do is find water ways that people who don't travel very often, take their old boats, put them there with gaping holes in the side and wait for them to sink.

HOST: Gioia, Yassky and others have introduced a bill that would require companies to register their barges and prominently display their name and contact number above the waterline. Pile Foundation has not returned calls.