Aviation Conspiracy: Politicians "Starting" To Address Aviation's Toxic Emissions!!!

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http://pages.prodigy.net/rockaway/newsletter476.htm

Aviation Conspiracy Newsletter
#476........................................................................April
13,  2008 Past newsletters can be accessed at:
http://pages.prodigy.net/rockaway/ACNewsmenu.htm  If you want to get the
newsletter sent to you every week, sign up to AviationWatch. Bill Mulcahy
rockaway@prodigy.net

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Quote of the Week: "This plan will further exacerbate the poor air quality
facing our region and particularly impact our children and citizens with
compromised respiratory and immune systems," Greenwich (Connecticut) First
Selectman Peter Tesei on impact of Airspace Redesign on Fairfield County,
Connecticut

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Politicians "Starting" To Address Aviation's Toxic Emissions!!!

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As Bill Sees It (Editorial):  Finally Politicians Focus On Health Impacts Of
Airport Toxic Emissions. When Will The MEDIA Discover It?  As someone who
suffers from asthma (which I developed in adulthood) I was heartened to see
that the commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Environmental
Protection said that diesel emissions "present the greatest cancer risk in
New Jersey" and the communities near Newark Liberty International Airport
have the highest asthma-related deaths in the state. While aviation is not
the sole cause of these deaths, the airports presence with all the traffic
involved with it is a major contributor. It doesn't take a rocket scientist
to figure out that increasing the capacity of Newark Airport will increase
the numbers of human deaths. While I'm sure the corrupt FAA and federal EPA
bureaucrat ghouls blame the people (including the children no doubt)  for
living near an airport, apparently there are "some" government officials who
do care about Americans dying from aviation pollution. If more of them, and
politicians, speak out against the plans to increase aviation pollution,
maybe we can start reversing it. How many more American children (and
adults) will have to develop asthma, get increased blood pressure, stokes
and have heart attacks due to airport expansion until "our" corporate
controlled government acts?

FAA Getting Turbulence Over Airline Industry "Customers!!!" Like every
victim of FAA corruption and viciousness I was happy to see their own people
turn on the airline industry-friendly FAA management. It seems that the
increased planes from the FAA's northeast region airspace redesign plan is
what really got the ball rolling. Politicians, especially from New Jersey,
started to get heat from their constituents and started to turn the heat on
the FAA. First, by holding up the appointment of the FAA administrator and
then holding hearings on complaints by inspectors about their being coerced
into overlooking safety violations!!! One FAA inspector even said his boss
hinted at repercussions effecting his "family"' when he made a complaint!!!
I only hope that these management creeps will find "their" jobs in jeopardy,
not the inspectors who were trying to do an honest job. Having been a fire
inspector in New York City for a short time after I was injured on the job,
I know how inspectors can be influenced by corrupt bosses. Sometimes justice
prevails, as it did in my job when they took my boss out of headquarters in
handcuffs.

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Teamster Chief Criticizes American Airlines Uncertified CHINESE Maintenance
On Aircraft!!! A "hands-off" Federal Aviation Administration that lets
airlines "do whatever they want" is to blame for the recent raft of flights
grounded by American and other airlines, International Brotherhood of
Teamsters General President James Hoffa said Thursday. "Because of a cozy
relationship with the airlines, (the FAA) is not pushing these people with
safety requirements," Hoffa said during an interview with the
Tribune-Review. Yesterday, American Airlines canceled more than 900 flights
served by MD-80 aircraft that turned up with faulty wiring. The carrier, the
world's largest, had canceled more than 1,000 flights Wednesday and about
430 on Tuesday. The FAA ordered a sweeping check of maintenance records at
all airlines a month ago after criticism that fuselage inspections were
missed on Southwest Airlines' Boeing 737s. The agency fined Southwest $10.2
million for continuing to operate the aircraft for three years anyway.  "We
don't need anybody to die in order to see there's a problem," said the
Teamsters chief. Hoffa said the government fuels the problem by allowing
airlines to outsource aircraft maintenance overseas. Teamster-member
mechanics tell him aircraft often return to service in the United States
with dials and flaps reassembled incorrectly. "(United Airlines) does
maintenance in Beijing with 2,200 mechanics, and only five of them are
FAA-certified," he said. "That, to me, is a threat." The Teamsters chief
was
in Pittsburgh visiting workplaces to drum up support for presidential
candidate Barack Obama, whom the union endorsed Feb. 20. "The Bush
administration is basically hands-off, and they send that message to
industry all the time," Hoffa said. "That's why we have less bridge
inspectors and mine inspectors and food inspectors."
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_561797.html

Connecticut: Monday, April 14th Meeting On Fairfield County Airspace
Redesign Lawsuit To Be This Week!!! The Alliance for Sensible Airspace
Planning will host a public meeting Monday, April 14, at Greenwich Town Hall
to address concerns and answer public questions regarding the Federal
Aviation Administration's proposed flight plan aimed to ease air traffic
congestion in the metropolitan New York area and its implications for
Fairfield County. The event will also serve as an opportunity to review the
status of lawsuits pending against the FAA.The open forum will take place
from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.Fairfield County officials have scheduled a regional
Town Hall meeting for residents to get an update on efforts to oppose a
Federal Aviation Administration airspace redesign project. "It's to raise
awareness and certainly hear from our elected officials," said Judy Neville,
former first selectwoman of New Canaan and chief operating officer of the
Alliance for Sensible Airspace Planning. The alliance, made up of officials
from Greenwich, Stamford, Norwalk, Darien and other municipalities, last
year filed a lawsuit opposing the FAA plan and lobbying Congress and other
federal and state authorities to intercede on the municipalities' behalf.
The alliance says the FAA did not take into account noise, environmental and
safety impacts when it approved the redesign. The FAA also appeared to
downplay the increase in air traffic - more than 500 flights, according to
the alliance - that will be diverted over Fairfield County, Neville said.
"It's significant," she said. "It's a much higher number than we
anticipated." The alliance is lobbying for the FAA to look into other
alternatives of easing flight congestion and delays that would not require
the redesign. Though residents in many municipalities support the alliance,
some in Greenwich say the FAA redesign would spare the town from noise and
environmental impacts that other areas would suffer. Still, First Selectman
Peter Tesei said Greenwich wants to stay in the alliance because withdrawing
would put the town in a weak position. "The interests of the region are the
interests of Greenwich," he said. "We don't want to be standing alone.
Residents may not be concerned about it now, but wait until it's
implemented. There may be a different opinion then, and the question
becomes, why didn't we stand with our neighbors." Editor's Note: It looks as
if some communities are starting to get smart and not falling for the FAA's
lies. United action, lawsuits and political pressure are the only thing that
will save their quality of life and peace.
http://www.acorn-online.com/news/publish/greenwich/31683.shtml









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Important Aviation News
Stories This Week



Diesel fumes called New Jersey's "greatest cancer risk" Wednesday, April 9,
2008
Last updated: Wednesday April 9, 2008, EDT 1:59 PM BY TOM DAVIS STAFF
WRITER
http://www.northjersey.com/news/aroundnj/Diesel_fumes_called_NJ_greatest_cancer_risk.html



Lisa Jackson, commissioner of the state Department of Environmental
Protection, said diesel emissions "present the greatest cancer risk in New
Jersey" and communities near Newark Liberty International Airport have the
highest asthma-related deaths in the state.

She noted the region also is affected by fuel emissions coming from truck
exhaust and other emissions that originate at the nearby Port of New York
and New Jersey.

Without offering specific plans, Jackson noted there is no clear threshold
for determining fuel emissions' impact on health.

"Port emissions will continue to grow - that is the trend we must try to
stem," said Jackson, speaking to the New Jersey Clean Air Council on
Wednesday.

Jackson made her remarks before an audience of environmentalists, lobbyists
and government officials who appeared at the Clean Air Council's public
hearing to discuss air quality at ports and airports.

The council, an independent environmental advisory board, invited
representatives from the trucking and airline industries to the DEP's
Trenton headquarters to address what role they can play in producing cleaner
air in North Jersey.

Tim Pohle, general counsel of the Air Transport Association, said his
industry is burning 4 percent less fuel than it was in 2000 - despite having
a 12 percent increase in passengers. Fuel efficiency has improved 103
percent since 1978, he added.

Newark, JFK and La Guardia airports, as a result, contribute to 4 percent of
the air pollutants near the airports - which is lower than the national
average of 6 percent, said Pohle, who called the industry's record
"enviable."

"We're seeking to enhance our technology - we want a different fuel," he
said. "With skyrocketing fuel prices, anything is going to put us in a
better position."

Gail Toth, executive director of the New Jersey Motor Truck Association,
said her industry is investigating various forms of technology that would
"recirculate" exhaust back into trucks. They're also hoping to fully develop
a diesel fuel with "ultra-low" levels of sulfur, she said.

Forcing the industry to change, however, could be tough because of rising
costs, she said.

"A new tractor-trailer could cost as much as $100,000," Toth said. "Even in
the best of times, this is a huge expense."

Environmentalists and transportation advocates, however, argued that the New
York area is lagging behind Los Angeles and other regions that have
developed strategies for dealing with airport and shipping port pollution.

The New Jersey Coalition Against Aircraft Noise voiced support for capacity
limits at Newark Airport, noting that aircraft spend "excessive" time on
runways and, ultimately, impact the area's air quality.

"The Port Authority is undertaking numerous initiatives to increase capacity
at Newark Airport," said Robert Belzer, president of the coalition. "We
believe that increased emissions from these activities need to be identified
with appropriate emissions offsets established."

Others, such as Jeff Tittel, director of the Sierra Club's New Jersey
chapter, said New Jersey must find ways to reduce emissions in the Newark
region where pollutants, he says, are 1,800 times above federal and state
acceptable levels.

"We have to make sure that we maintain the economy while trying to protect
everyone's health," he said.
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