by sureshot in Public Health & Safety
Posted on September 6, 2008 at 11:33 pm
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Does anyone know what, if anything, the city is doing about the tremendous increase in airplanes roaring overhead day and night? It’s often as frequent as every 30 seconds for hours on end, and sometimes the planes are extremely low.
Why has the city allowed this to go on so long? Are they doing anything about it? Why don’t they do a survey in the effected neighborhoods to find out exactly how bad it is? Why not use the automated phone notification system to inform everyone in the effected neighborhoods that the city wants to hear complaints via 311 and the city website?
I’ve heard complaints about this same thing from friends in some Cambridge neighborhoods. Why don’t the two cities work together to try and do something about this?
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Curtatone has addressed this issue in his blog (here: http://blogs.townonline.com/somervilleMayor/?p=312). 311 has taken several complaints about airplane noise, but I don’t think the automated system was ever used to solicit comments/complaints.
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Sureshot, you have got it right. I counted six planes in rapid succession taking off seemingly right above my head this morning as I got ready for work and my family ready for school.
I remember my father in law once talking about calling the FAA directly about complaints. Is there a number that citizens can call? The City of Somerville has a lot of other issues to deal with…
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we need to flood the city with 311 and website complaints
http://citizen.somervillema.intelligovsoftware.com/newRequest_2.aspx?serviceid=24544 .
if someone knows how we can complain directly to the faa, please share that.
here is my last website complaint to the city:
i was awakened about 7am by a plane roaring overhead. they continued every 30 seconds-2 minutes until i left at 7am. i returned about 4pm to find them still roaring overhead at the same rate. some are so loud they sound like they’ll land on the roof. sometimes one has to pause in a phone or direct discussion because the noise is so loud one can’t hear well. this goes on many-if not most-days, often until late at night. you have no idea the level of anger in the community-at capuano and the other “leaders” for selling us a bill of goods about this, and at the city government for seemingly doing nothing about this. the only way one knows anything about what the city is supposedly doing is if one goes searching. but it doesn’t matter, because action speaks louder than words, and things go on and on, going from bad to worse. why the hell doesn’t the city ACT? the quality of life is being destroyed here. DO SOMETHING! and actively and aggressively reach out to the community: explain, mobilize the community, DO SOMETHING TO GET SOME RESULTS. some cambridge neighborhoods are being subjected to the same assault: join with cambridge and take some ACTION. by this point, no one in the community believes the city will do anything meaningful. people are discussing what will happen to the value of their property, and if they want to continue living at logan airport. everyone is angry and pessimistic.
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I don’t mean to sound callous, but the city has NO control over this – it’s been covered again and again in the local newspapers. It has to do with what runway they use at Logan which has to do with the prevailing winds, which for the last few years (global warming?!?) have shifted to some extent causing an increase in the use of the the runway that directs planes over Somerville.
IMO, city living involves a bit of noise. Imagine what East Boston feels like. If you want to organize, I think it would be better to spend your time lobbying for inter-city high speed rail and a carbon tax, which would have a carrot and a stick effect on lowering the number of planes going in and out of Logan. Other than that, we are likely stuck with the noise. The FAA is not going to change flight patterns based on people “flooding” the city of Somerville with 311 and website complaints.
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Steve,
I don’t agree at all with your completely passive approach to noise pollution. I don’t think there is any reason to roll over and play dead as you advocate. And thousands and thousands of people around the country (actually, around the world) don’t either. You might want to take a look at this website:
http://www.nonoise.org/resource/trans/air/airport.htm
Although I’m certainly not a legal expert, I don’t believe it’s true that the FAA has the right to flood neighborhoods with noise and other pollution without restraint. In fact, I’ll bet there are many legal constraints on the right of the FAA and city and regional transportation authorities to spread noise and other pollution. I’ll bet there are even legal requirements for compensation when they do spread noise and other pollution. I think there were even locally agreed upon restrictions (that are now being violated) that were adopted when Massport was seeking approval for the new runway that is now our curse.
As for your statement that “city living involves a bit of noise”, I’d like to ask: where do you live? I don’t know which neighborhood you live in, but in my neighborhood there are often roaring, screeching airline engines passing overhead every 30 seconds to 2 minutes for hours on end, often from very early in the morning until very late at night, and sometimes for days in a row. In my book, and in my neighbors’, this does not qualify as “a bit of noise”. It is an unacceptable, violent assault. At times you can’t hear your own tv, or another voice in your own house. Your fatalism about accepting whatever the “authorities” throw at you seems to lead you to make light of what is actually a major problem. Just ask the homeowners who KNOW that their property values will drop as this new “factor” turns desirable neighborhoods into undesirable ones.
And as for “what about E Boston”: yes, they have to put up with a lot of noise (and not just they–you forgot about Winthrop and other neighborhoods very near the airport) –and it directly affects the value of the property in those communities. But you don’t seem to realize that, contrary to your advice to roll over and play dead, the residents in those communities have FOUGHT for years, and continue to fight, for as much abatement as they can possibly secure. And they have actually won any number of victories–large and small–that have mitigated the noise and other pollution problems somewhat.
Despite your insistence that it is well established that there is nothing the city can do, what you say is different than what the city says. If you call 311 and speak with the operator about this problem, you will be told that there are many, and constant, complaints, and that the city has been meeting with the FAA and MassPort to try and come up with a solution, and is even considering a lawsuit.
So, I continue to say, flood the city with complaints using 311 and the website and keep up the pressure (actually, I think the city actually wants as many of these complaints as possible to strengthen them in negotiations and litigation).
In my mind, petitions, demonstrations, and any other actions the community can take, are absolutely in order, are not necessarily futile, and are exactly what is called for.
Finally: I am amazed that someone who is completely pessimistic and fatalistic about the ability to force change on the airport authorities would advocate “lobbying for inter-city high speed rail and a carbon tax.” Why do you think you can take on and beat the auto/oil interests that have dictated national transportation policy for decades, but can’t have any effect on your local transportation authority? It seems a bit contradictory.
High speed rail is sorely needed–and I’ll support whatever efforts you make to organize to get it. But I’m not willing to put up with constant, punishing airplane noise while I’m waiting for you to beat Big Auto and Big Oil.
Join the fight, Steve. It’s in all of our interests.
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Sureshot,
I post with my real name, so you can look me up in the phone book. I live on Pinckney St, which – unless you live on Mt. Vernon or Crescent Street – is likely closer to the airport than you. I don’t have any big problem with airplane noise. The Brazilian Festival at the Holiday Inn a couple of weekends ago was rattling my windows however – and they had a permit from the city and a detail cop!
Good luck to you – and a word of advice: the FAA is not “your local transportation authority”.
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