thedrifter
10-26-06, 08:30 AM
Marines cut a deal to fly low and fast
Training flights can buzz islands but not wildlife refuge, according to settlement
Wade Rawlins, Staff Writer
A deal struck by environmental groups and the U.S. Marine Corps would allow jets to fly lower and faster over Cape Lookout National Seashore but would scrap plans to expand air combat training over Lake Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge.
As part of the legal settlement, the environmental groups -- the National Audubon Society, the North Carolina Wildlife Federation and Defenders of Wildlife -- will not oppose the military's request to the Federal Aviation Administration to allow planes to fly at subsonic speeds as low as 3,000 feet over Core Banks and Cape Lookout National Seashore.
"This should show that we are willing to work with the Navy when there is a real military need that doesn't cause extensive damage to the wildlife refuges," said Chris Canfield, executive director of Audubon North Carolina.
Neither the Navy nor the Marine Corps commented on the settlement. The agreement was approved Oct. 18 by U.S. District Judge Terrence Boyle and announced Wednesday by the environmental groups.
The Marine Corps, part of the Department of the Navy, asked the FAA in 2004 to designate two new boxes of airspace for pilot training between 3,000 feet and 18,000 feet over 900 square miles, near Cherry Point Marine Corps Station in Havelock.
Eastern North Carolina already has six areas of controlled airspace in addition to 15 military training routes and other restricted areas.
In its request, the Marine Corps said it needed more airspace over Core Banks and Cape Lookout National Seashore to give pilots more realistic tactical training as they fly between inland and ocean training areas. Currently, pilots slow down or climb to 10,000 feet when they fly over the area.
If the FAA approves the military's request, the Marines would fly about six low-altitude, high-speed flights a day across the banks.
As part of the settlement, the military agreed to abandon its request to seek airspace for combat training over 750 square miles in Beaufort, Hyde, Pamlico, Tyrrell and Washington counties.
That request would have allowed planes to fly at 3,000 to 18,000 feet over parts of four wildlife refuges and train about 7.5 hours a day. Wildlife and visitors to the refuges would have been exposed to increased noise levels.
"What they were proposing in the Mattamuskeet area was unacceptable," Canfield said. "It was targeting some of the most important refuges in the state."
In response to a lawsuit brought by environmental groups, a federal judge found last year that the military violated federal law by concluding -- without doing an in-depth environmental study -- that additional flights would not harm waterfowl or wildlife refuges.
The court found that the high concentration of wildlife refuges in the area showed the federal government has long recognized the need to protect the delicate ecosystems. The court said the military would need to do an in-depth environmental study of the effects of additional flights if it wished to proceed.
Under the settlement, the Marines may propose new airspace in the region, but they must conduct an environmental study of reasonable alternatives.
"This is the first of two essential steps by the Navy needed to protect the wildlife and refuges of Eastern North Carolina," said Derb Carter, senior attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center. "The second step is to withdraw or find a new location for the proposed outlying landing field."
The lawsuit challenging the landing field is still pending.
Environmental groups had challenged the expanded military airspace and the proposed practice landing field in the same lawsuit. But the court split the issues into separate legal actions.
To comply with the court, the Navy is conducting additional environmental studies for the proposed practice landing field, which it wants to build in Washington and Beaufort counties.
Staff writer Wade Rawlins can be reached at 829-4528 or wrawlins@newsobserver.com.
Ellie
Training flights can buzz islands but not wildlife refuge, according to settlement
Wade Rawlins, Staff Writer
A deal struck by environmental groups and the U.S. Marine Corps would allow jets to fly lower and faster over Cape Lookout National Seashore but would scrap plans to expand air combat training over Lake Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge.
As part of the legal settlement, the environmental groups -- the National Audubon Society, the North Carolina Wildlife Federation and Defenders of Wildlife -- will not oppose the military's request to the Federal Aviation Administration to allow planes to fly at subsonic speeds as low as 3,000 feet over Core Banks and Cape Lookout National Seashore.
"This should show that we are willing to work with the Navy when there is a real military need that doesn't cause extensive damage to the wildlife refuges," said Chris Canfield, executive director of Audubon North Carolina.
Neither the Navy nor the Marine Corps commented on the settlement. The agreement was approved Oct. 18 by U.S. District Judge Terrence Boyle and announced Wednesday by the environmental groups.
The Marine Corps, part of the Department of the Navy, asked the FAA in 2004 to designate two new boxes of airspace for pilot training between 3,000 feet and 18,000 feet over 900 square miles, near Cherry Point Marine Corps Station in Havelock.
Eastern North Carolina already has six areas of controlled airspace in addition to 15 military training routes and other restricted areas.
In its request, the Marine Corps said it needed more airspace over Core Banks and Cape Lookout National Seashore to give pilots more realistic tactical training as they fly between inland and ocean training areas. Currently, pilots slow down or climb to 10,000 feet when they fly over the area.
If the FAA approves the military's request, the Marines would fly about six low-altitude, high-speed flights a day across the banks.
As part of the settlement, the military agreed to abandon its request to seek airspace for combat training over 750 square miles in Beaufort, Hyde, Pamlico, Tyrrell and Washington counties.
That request would have allowed planes to fly at 3,000 to 18,000 feet over parts of four wildlife refuges and train about 7.5 hours a day. Wildlife and visitors to the refuges would have been exposed to increased noise levels.
"What they were proposing in the Mattamuskeet area was unacceptable," Canfield said. "It was targeting some of the most important refuges in the state."
In response to a lawsuit brought by environmental groups, a federal judge found last year that the military violated federal law by concluding -- without doing an in-depth environmental study -- that additional flights would not harm waterfowl or wildlife refuges.
The court found that the high concentration of wildlife refuges in the area showed the federal government has long recognized the need to protect the delicate ecosystems. The court said the military would need to do an in-depth environmental study of the effects of additional flights if it wished to proceed.
Under the settlement, the Marines may propose new airspace in the region, but they must conduct an environmental study of reasonable alternatives.
"This is the first of two essential steps by the Navy needed to protect the wildlife and refuges of Eastern North Carolina," said Derb Carter, senior attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center. "The second step is to withdraw or find a new location for the proposed outlying landing field."
The lawsuit challenging the landing field is still pending.
Environmental groups had challenged the expanded military airspace and the proposed practice landing field in the same lawsuit. But the court split the issues into separate legal actions.
To comply with the court, the Navy is conducting additional environmental studies for the proposed practice landing field, which it wants to build in Washington and Beaufort counties.
Staff writer Wade Rawlins can be reached at 829-4528 or wrawlins@newsobserver.com.
Ellie