July 6, 2001August 2, 2026

Letter to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Washington State Department of Ecology Regarding Low Flow Analysis – Flow Impact Offset Facility Proposal

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A letter from Water Resources Consulting LLC (Peter Willing, Ph.D.) on behalf of the Airport Communities Coalition commenting on the Port of Seattle’s ‘Low Flow Analysis – Flow Impact Offset Facility Proposal’ submitted by Parametrix. The letter criticizes the document as incomplete, lacking reasonable assurance that the Port’s SeaTac Airport plans will meet water quality standards in Miller Creek, Walker Creek, and Des Moines Creek. Key concerns include missing structural and operational details, insufficient stormwater storage plans, inadequate nutrient and metals treatment, and overreliance on adaptive management as a substitute for concrete water quality protection measures.

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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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