Schumer Unveils New Approach to Immediately Amend FAA Airspace Redesign Plan to Significantly Reduce Airplane Noise Over Westchester and Rockland

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Schumer Unveils New Approach To Immediately Amend FAA Airspace Redesign Plan To Significantly Reduce Airplane Noise Over Westchester And Rockland

U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer today unveiled a plan to have the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) promptly amend its Airspace Redesign Plan by raising the altitude to above 10,000 feet for all flights slated to travel over Westchester and Rockland counties. Schumer's announcement comes as the FAA is finalizing its redesign plan to reduce air congestion nationally and in the Tri-state area. The plan sets new flight paths for aircraft over parts of Westchester and Rockland Counties, which could increase noise and pollution over some residential neighborhoods.

Schumer's new plan will significantly reduce noise and pollution impacts by raising the flight altitudes. And, because raising the flight altitude does not involve extraordinary circumstances, it is considered a categorical exclusion, allowing the FAA to avoid the lengthy National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process and to incorporate the change into the redesign plan within 90 days.

"This is a golden opportunity for the FAA to use its flexibility to alter the proposed Airspace Redesign Plan so its impact on neighborhoods across the region will be minimized," said Senator Schumer. "My plan will immediately raise the altitude-ceiling for planes to over 10,000 feet, which will significantly reduce noise and pollution impacts on Rockland and Westchester communities. The FAA has the power to make this happen with the stroke of a pen, and I will push to make sure they do just that before the plan is implemented."

The FAA's redesign plan includes new flight paths that will usher in an increase in air traffic over Rockland and Westchester Counties. In some cases, under the proposed plan, local residents could see as many as 600 flights a day fly over their communities. The majority of the flights would travel in a corridor which runs between Suffern and Hillcrest in Rockland County, and includes the communities of Wesley Hills, Montebello, Kaser, Monsey, Chestnut Ridge and Pearl River. In Westchester, new flight patterns will bring additional air traffic over parts of Yonkers, Hawthorne, Thornwood, Peekskill, North Salem, Pound Ridge, Scarsdale and Chappaqua.

Local residents are concerned that with planes flying as low as 6,000-8,000 feet above the ground in Rockland and 6,000-10,000 feet in Westchester, communities throughout the two counties will experience a significant rise in noise levels particularly in areas that previously were never exposed to air traffic. Many residents fear the spike in the number of planes flying overhead could lead to an overall reduction in the quality of life by increasing noise and pollution levels. Schumer contends that the FAA has failed to adequately take into account the concerns of residents in Rockland and Westchester Counties regarding the effects that the proposed Redesign changes will bring.

"Residents in these communities have gotten short shrift from the FAA," said Senator Schumer. "Raising the altitude ceilings will reduce noise and pollution and address their justified quality of life concerns without compromising the redesign plans' overall objectives."

To protect local residents' quality of life, Schumer today unveiled a plan for the FAA to implement which would adjust the original redesign plan by raising the flight ceiling above 10,000 feet. The plan is designed to ease any impact a spike in flights over Rockland and Westchester Counties will have on residents. And by raising the flight ceiling, but maintaining the direction of the actual flight route, other sections of the county won't be subjected to the change.

Schumer's change would qualify as a categorical exclusion, meaning the amendment could be studied without going through the cumbersome NEPA process. According to FAA guidelines, actions involving the modification of airspace and air traffic procedures conducted at 3,000 feet or more above ground level typically qualify as categorical exclusions. Although categorical exclusions can be denied if environmental controversy exists, Schumer's proposed change in altitude will not alter the flight path, which could add new environmental concerns. Instead, it calls for an adjustment in the ceiling to raise flight altitudes. If the altitude change is accepted as a categorical exclusion, this amendment can be incorporated into the redesign plan within as few as 90 days, ensuring that it will be included when the FAA begins implementing other redesign changes.

"An amendment to the redesign plan will provide significant noise relief for these communities without posing additional environmental concerns, and today I'm calling on the FAA to immediately study raising the altitudes and implement this change as swiftly as possible," added Schumer.

Earlier this month Schumer sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) demanding that the agency answer seven concerns the Senator had on how Rockland and Westchester residents would be affected under the implementation of the Airspace Redesign Plan.

Schumer has repeatedly called on the FAA to ensure that local concerns are adequately expressed and considered in the Airspace Redesign Project. Time and again, he has pushed the FAA to alleviate air traffic issues by maximizing the number of air traffic comptrollers, which are chronically under-staffed at area airports. In early July, he sent a letter to FAA Administrator Marion Blakey to schedule additional meetings in the New York metropolitan area in order to hear the concerns of local residents. In his letter he expressed that he understood that the priority of the redesign project was efficiency, but that the FAA could not overlook the fact that increased efficiency and increased traffic would mean an increase in air traffic noise and pollution for many communities in Rockland and Westchester Counties.

In July of this year, Schumer called for Blakey's resignation due to her inability to effectively lead the FAA. Schumer wrote to Secretary Peters in an attempt to secure firm leadership and hard answers on this aviation-related issue.

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