Notes

Dr. Peter Willing submits a declaration in support of the Airport Communities Coalition’s sur-reply on a motion for stay before Washington’s Pollution Control Hearings Board. The declaration challenges the Port of Seattle’s commitment to retrofitting the existing stormwater system at Sea-Tac Airport, arguing that the ‘extent practicable’ standard is undefined and does not meet AKART requirements or provide reasonable assurance that water quality standards will not be violated. Willing also critiques the four BMPs listed in the Stormwater Master Plan, noting only one goes beyond the King County Basic Water Quality Menu.

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As the source for federal transportation grants, the Puget Sound Regional Council was charged with developing a system to meet the growing need for commercial aviation. When the search for a second airport failed, they authorized the Port of Seattle to build the Third Runway, with a mandate to develop a noise abatement and mitigation program. In their effort to stop the Third Runway, the ACC argued over every detail of the Port's efforts--including property buyouts and sound insulation. The dispute was meant to be settled by a three member Expert Arbitration Panel. This is their final report. It finds 2-1, that the Port's program was insufficient in several respects. Despite that, funding for the Third Runway was approved by the PSRC, and the 'Port Package' program, proceeded largely unchanged. Expert Arbitration Panel's final decision finding that the Port of Seattle had not shown sufficient reduction in real on-the-ground noise impacts to satisfy noise reduction conditions required for approval of a third runway at Sea-Tac International Airport. The majority decision concluded the Port's noise abatement programs were insufficient despite being impressive in scope.

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