I thought people on the list would like to see the latest ROAR email
newsletter. Anyone who wants to be added to the ROAR list can email me
directly:
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Three Big Victories In Fighting Airport Pollution: The ROAR report
for Sept. 15:
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Those of us who have been fighting noise know there have been LOTS of
setbacks over the past three decades...but this week we can celebrate
three victories that give us reason for hope. Each has a lot to do
with the support you have all given...showing up at hearings,
emailing, calling, organizing, voting. All that energy that used to
be spent complaining has been turned into action and it's starting to
pay off. Thank you! (This may be a little long but good news doesn't
always come in small packages)
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The Headlines:
1. Finally, A Common Agenda At City Hall
2. Airport Construction Won't Endanger Water
3. Airport Noise A Factor In Senate Primary
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1. Finally, A Common Agenda At City Hall.
For two years ROAR has wanted to have a "strategy summit" that got
all elected officials representing people under the noise path
together with activists to agree on how they would fight the
problem. Thanks to leadership by Minneapolis Council Members Dore
Mead, Barret Lane and Sandy Colvin Roy, that meeting took place
Wednesday and featured state legislators, representatives of county
commissioners, the Mayor's office, the Chamber of Commerce, the
Convention and Visitors Association and others. R.T. Rybak and
Naethe Richardson represented ROAR; Dick Saunders and Dean Lindberg
SMAAC.
In the three-hour session we identified the range of actions
that could be taken and focused on four basic directions:
*outlaw the louder, older planes with so-called "hush kits"
*expand the area eligible for soundproofing.
*develop federal noise pollution standards on how much noise an
airport can produce...with enforcement and penalties
The fourth category involves the broad but very important goal
of having the city of Minneapolis play a role in deciding region's
long term aviation policy...This means we want to be at the table to
decide how we can get more planes into the state while rolling back
pollution.
While some of these areas may seem broad, the goal is to now
attach specific goals that can be measured to each area. We will
continue to be part of these discussions and see them as a very
important step toward finally bringing the full power of the city of
Minnepolis behind efforts to protect citizens from pollution. Now on
to other cities! (More on this as it develops.)
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2. Airport Construction Won't Endanger Water
All your efforts this summer to fight the planned "dewatering" at
the airport have paid off with a compromise that we think is very
good. Here is a report on that fight from Scott Benson, who with
Sara Strzok represented ROAR at last night's hearing:
>"Last night the Minnehaha Creek Watershed District(MCWD) approved a
permit to the Metropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) for construction
of the tunnel under the north/south runway. As a result of our
efforts, the MAC assured the MCWD that it would use a construction
method called jet grouting which will essentially form a box around
the work area and reduce the need for the massive dewatering
originally proposed by the MAC. The MAC also agreed to extensive
monitoring of lake and groundwater levels as well as monitoring of
possible migration of contaminants.
>
>"Most important, the permit provides that if the monitoring raises
concerns for the MCWD about the dewatering activity, the MCWD can
stop the dewatering. Jeff Hamiel, executive director of the MAC,
stated: "This project at the airport is not worth damaging those
valuable resources. That is our position." Hamiel also stated
unequivocally that if the judgment of the MCWD is that the dewatering
is having a detrimental effect on the environment,"we will stop
it." Hamiel's comments alluded to the fact that the MAC already has
enough on its hands with citizens concerned about airport noise to
engage in activity that would otherwise harm the environmental
resources of South Minneapolis.
>
>"This is a tremendous victory for the citizens of Minneapolis.
Because of ROAR's citizen involvement and the MCWD's persistence, we
have achieved more than we could have hoped for in any other arena.
Now the agency with the greatest expertise in protecting our
environmental resources, the MCWD, will act as a watchdog over this
project. This is a testament to the cooperative
>efforts between the MCWD and the MAC."
>
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3.Airport Noise A Factor In Senate Primary
Thanks to the many people who have come to our candidate forums and
been active in the Senate race, carrying the message that the next US
Senator should be an aggressive advocate against pollution in
Congress. The two candidates who were strongest on the issue in the
primary Mark Dayton and Mike Ciresi both ran extremely well in the
areas we targeted, and they benefited from many of you volunteering
in their races. We are very pleased a candidate as strong on this
issue as Mark Dayton will be running. We also plan to continue to
work with Independence Candidate James Gibson, who came to our
candidate forum, and Rod Grams, who has not yet responded to our
invitations. (Anyone active with Grams should encourage him to return
our calls and invitations.)
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Again, sorry for such a long note but LOTS of good news.
Now, who can you find to join our email list...The more people we
wire, the more victories we will have. Can you send us some names
today?
It's Loud: We Vote!
