President's Report Update

Dear Supporters:

Many of us were engaged in the election campaigns. The email blast led to few volunteers or new members. It is now likely that the Annual meeting will be online and adjourned until the Forum. The Board is encouraging more use of the Web-site and a media campaign to advertise the blogs and the Forum, and perhaps raise a little money for the Forum.

SMAAC is working to change national aviation policy. Partnering with the Aviation-Impacted Community Alliance (AICA), and Members of Congress representing Districts around large, troubled airports, we are using Appeals Court decisions and environmental findings to demand changes in FAA policy Some Representatives and Senators are beholden to airline lobbies and PACs or have a partisan view favoring businesses over public health and safety. The next crisis, climate change, I think is more of an aviation issue than they realize, and a tactical opening in elections.

The most recent example: support of the ridiculous 2019 Trump-inspired report that air pollution could be "measured" by modeling ground noise averages. Gases go up, noise goes down and spreads out. It is correct that low routes are louder and some pollutants (carbon dust, lead drops) more concentrated along an airport departure or approach route.

https://assets.nationbuilder.com/smaac/pages/1352

Do you like this page?

Showing 3 reactions

Sign in with

Jim Spensley commented 2024-12-04 16:18:37 -0600
Let me know if you think this is a good Forum Topic.
Jim Spensley commented 2021-11-09 20:48:49 -0600
In 2018-19, when runway use changes increased noise and pollution (GHG) per flight on average —more routes, but fewer flights on some routes and many new routes spread the noise around —the Cities of Eagan, Minneapolis and Richfield agreed to amend the Consent Degree. The effect, if not the intent, was funds from “airport revenue” to continue the contour mapping and Noise Oversight Committee business. Consequently, when COVID-19 shut down MSP operations to less than a third of 2019 flights in 2020, route-changes made due to a safety-needs in 2010 were continued. and mapped below 60 DNL due to fewer flights per route.
Despite exposing more people to more noise and pollution per flight (a situation kept from public review for 9 years). T he community NOC members nodded affirmation of unlikely eventual mitigation.
It later came to light that the Trump plan was to adopt the 65 DNL noise metric as the threshold for environmental reviews. Ground average daily noise intensity has nothing to do with air quality and health and safety risks, of course. Nevertheless, NOC and MAC commented favorably on the proposal when posted in the Federal Register.
Smaac Forum Panel published this page 2021-11-02 17:05:16 -0500