PHOTO: U.S. Rep. Grace Meng this week said she was disappointed with a short-term extension of an FAA bill that “does nothing to mitigate the…noise that continues to ruin the quality of life in our borough.” Photo Courtesy of the Federal Asian Pacific American Council
By Michael V. Cusenza
At least one borough elected official this week voiced her frustration with her congressional colleagues after a short-term Federal Aviation Administration bill that contains no provisions to combat airplane noise over Queens was passed in the House of Representatives.
U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D-Flushing) has expressed disappointment with the Airport and Airway Extension Act that was approved Monday night that extends the operating authority of the FAA through mid-July. Meng said she would have preferred a long-term renewal with measures to mitigate aircraft noise. Since 2012, the amount of airplane noise over Queens has increased significantly due to the FAA’s implementation of new flight patterns over the borough.
“Passing a short-term extension of the FAA bill does nothing to mitigate the blistering sounds of airplane noise over Queens – noise that continues to ruin the quality of life in our borough,” Meng said. “This is the second time in five months that the House has passed a short-term measure without any anti-noise provisions, and the delay only continues to kick the can down the road. Relief can’t come soon enough for Queens residents. Something must be done to mitigate the barrage of airplane noise over our communities. I urge the House to bring up a long-term bill that provides solutions to aircraft noise as soon as this temporary extension expires in July.”
Last September, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey completed a lengthy project to reconstruct and rehabilitate Runway 4L-22R at John F. Kennedy International Airport. The enterprise, which began in early 2015, impacted the quality of life of thousands of southern Queens residents who had to endure a tremendous increase in plane traffic over their homes from redirected aircraft.
This past summer, Meng and other members of the Congressional Quiet Skies Caucus sent a letter to Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Penn.), House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee chairman, and Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.), the committee’s ranking member, calling for noise mitigation to be part of the FAA bill. The specific recommendations included the following:
- Mandating a robust community engagement process, including pre-decisional public hearings, for new flight paths or procedures or changes to existing flight paths and procedures.
- Requiring the FAA to use supplemental noise metrics when considering the impact of aviation noise on affected communities and lower the acceptable noise threshold for affected homes and businesses.
- Clarifying that airport operators are legally allowed to implement – and should strongly consider – noise mitigation options in communities experiencing aircraft noise levels below the current noise threshold.
- Reforming Section 213(c)(2) of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, which allows FAA to short-circuit the environmental review process when implementing new flight paths.
- Mandating independent research on the health impacts of aviation noise.
The FAA’s current operating authority expires on March 31.
michael@theforumnewsgroup.com
