UPDATE: Council Feedback on F-35s

Which is really your feedback. It is 40 pages long . . . here’s the main recommendations at this point- it may or may not be what gets passed tonight, I’m not clear as I think there is another substitute resolution coming. Good news is that if you have input, its a SHORT agenda for tonight. Will the council bend to the will of the Chamber of Commerce or will they vote for the people of Madison who are most impacted by this decision and the environment? 🙁 I hope I’m wrong about my prediction.But I’m not very hopeful.

About Together Truax & the Chamber of Commerce (from their website):
Launched in June 2016 by the Chamber, in partnership with the Badger Air Community Council, Together Truax is a program dedicated to assisting the effort to base the F-35A aircraft at Madison’s Truax Field. The initiative has included advocacy, marketing and lobbying, generating more than $100,000 in private investment and enlisting more than 2,100 supporters. More information can be found at togethertruax.com.

The full report is 40 pages with maps and charts and graphs and other visuals, but here’s the core recommendations.

UPDATE: New materials were provided after posting this morning. Here is the new resolution and final recommendations.

NEIGHBORHOOD AND HEALTH RECOMMENDATION 1:
In the preparation for the EIS, the City of Madison recommends that the specific economic,
demographic and health data detailed in this above and other relevant characteristics of the
communities located near Truax Field be included in the report.

NEIGHBORHOOD AND HEALTH RECOMMENDATION 2:
The EIS should include strategies to reduce the air quality impact of ANG activities that may
contribute to local particulate matter, air toxicity, diesel particulate matter, cancer risk and
respiratory hazards.

NOISE RECOMMENDATION 1:
The City of Madison would like to see more data and information about the number of F-16 flights that have flown in and out of the south end of Truax Field over the last five years. The ANG has shared the existing flight paths which fly in and out from the north, as a means to reduce noise impacts on dense areas. Nevertheless flight traffic, weather and other circumstances forces ANG to fly in and out of the south end of Truax Field. Information on the frequency of these occurrences would better inform residents regarding current and future noise impacts.

NOISE RECOMMENDATION 2:
EIS modeling should address and evaluate the noise impact on sensitive groups and facilities, as illustrated in the City of Madison maps (Appendix B).

NOISE RECOMMENDATION 3:
The City of Madison requests a complete set of previously conducted research on F-35A noise data and modeling. The City also requests a locally tailored noise abatement strategy for Truax Field.

NOISE RECOMMENDATION 4:
City residents have raised concerns about the noise that can cause hearing damage in a relatively short amount of time. The City of Madison urges ANG to include a noise abatement strategy in the EIS to address the possibility of hearing damage related to F-35A takeoffs and landings.

CULTURAL RESOUCES RECOMMENDATION 1:
The EIS should include a record of the Native American burial mound “Truax Air Park Mound”
including maps and descriptions. The EIS should also include clear guidelines to avoid impacts on the mound

WATER RESOURCES RECOMMENDATION 1:
The EIS report should review the contaminants found in the Starkweather Creek downstream from the airport and determine which chemicals may be coming from Truax Field. The EIS should include an updated runoff, water filtration and monitoring plan to address contaminants. The UW Starkweath
er Creek Watershed report offers numerous details and strategies to improve filtration of water and contaminants at sites throughout the Watershed.

This is what the report found:

The 2006 University of Wisconsin -Madison Starkweather Creek Watershed report authors conducted water sample testing throughout the watershed. The report included an analysis of chemicals that that “prefer being in fat tissues rather than water. … These contaminants are of concern due to their toxicity and carcinogenic tendencies. Some cause taste and odor problems in the water supply and others may cause health concerns especially in humans.” The study found the following chemicals among others in higher concentrations relative to the concentrations found in the control sample.
9-Methylantracene
Phenanthrene
Fluorene
Fluoranthene
Pyrene
Benz(a)thracene
Chrysene/triphenylene
Benzo (b)fluoranthene
Benzo (k)fluoranthene
Benzo(a)pyrene
Benzo (e)pyrene
Stigmasterol
Perylene
Indeno(cd)pyrene
Benzo(ghi)perylene
I-pheynl-napthalene
Methyl Flourene +
Octylcyclohexane
Cyclopenta(cd)pyrene
Dibenzo(ae)ppyrene
Dehyroabietic acid
Bezo (a)pyrene
I-methylchrysene +
Benzo(GHI)fluoranthene
Retene
9,10 Anthraquinone
Benz(a)anthracene-7,12-dione
Phthalic acid(M)
Dodecanoic acid(M)
Tetradecanoic acid(M)

WATER RESOURCES RECOMMENDATION 2:
In recent years, Southern Wisconsin has had more frequent and intense rain events. The EIS
should develop models for extreme weather events including flooding and other environmental hazards at Truax Field, Cherokee Marsh and Starkweather Creek. The EIS should also develop adaptation and response plans for extreme weather events.

HAZARDOUS MATERIALS RECOMMENDATION 1:
Military sites and airport facilities often involve work with chemicals utilized for the operation and maintenance of planes, helicopters and jets. The City of Madison requests a list of the solvents, lubricants, petroleum products including fuels that are currently in use at the ANG facility at Truax, as well as a list of chemicals that will be used to support operations and maintenance of the F-35A Aircraft.

HAZARDOUS MATERIALS RECOMMENDATION 2:
The F-35A’s can carry up to 18,000 pounds internally and externally. The EIS should provide information about how much fuel and what type of fuels will be carried. The EIS should also detail what types of armaments will be carried and what the types of emergency response will be employed in the event of a crash or accident

HAZARDOUS MATERIALS RECOMMENDATION 2:
The F-35A’s can carry up to 18,000 pounds internally and externally. The EIS should provide information about how much fuel and what type of fuels will be carried. The EIS should also detail what types of armaments will be carried (including nuclear munitions), what would be released from these munitions if the planes crash and/or burn, the environmental and public health effects of these potential releases, and what the types of emergency response will be employed in the event of a crash or accident.

HAZARDOUS MATERIALS RECOMMENDATION 3:
A full assessment of how the health and safety of Air Force and National Guard personnel will be protected in the case of F-35 crashes, explosions, or burning, and plans for responses to these incidents.

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