Earlier this year, Piedmont Triad International Airport (PTIA) announced that it would be conducting a noise study in 2019 – and, on Wednesday, June 19, the airport announced the time and place of the first public workshop to allow citizens who may be affected by the noise a chance to voice their concerns and hear information about airport plans.
The hope is that the citizen input and the public dialogue will help the airport mitigate negative effects that noise may have on communities near the airport.
On Thursday, June 27 PTIA will hold the “open house style” meeting from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Greensboro-High Point Marriott Airport, at 1 Marriott Dr. in Greensboro.
According to information from airport officials, at that meeting, displays will offer background information on aircraft noise levels and noise regulations, and also provide an overview of the airport’s project schedule.
Those who want to attend the meeting can show up at any time between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. to browse the information and discuss the new study update with staff and with members of the team conducting the study.
For those who can’t attend, meeting materials will be posted on the project’s website (www.PTIPart150Update.com) after the workshop. The study is called a “Part 150 Update” because it’s part of the federal “Airport Noise Compatibility Planning Program” established under Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations Part 150.
According to a statement from the Piedmont Triad Airport Authority – the airport’s governing body – the authority “is committed to being a good neighbor and a responsible operator of the Piedmont Triad International Airport.”
The statement continues: “The most comprehensive way an airport addresses noise is through the Airport Noise Compatibility Planning program. A Part 150 Study is a voluntary, federally funded and supervised program that helps airports find ways to reduce noncompatible land uses by analyzing current and future airport use. Committees of citizens, airport users and other stakeholders are formed to advise a noise consultant team as they analyze aircraft traffic patterns and review current noise mitigation measures in accordance with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) guidance.”
The Airport Authority conducted the first Part 150 study in 2008 before the airport opened its newest runway in 2010. Since then, as a result of that study, the airport has taken steps to mitigate noise – including changes in approach routes and a sound insulation program in some neighborhoods.
According to the statement from PTIA, there have been a lot of changes over the past decade. Aircraft operations, the types of aircraft flying to and from the airport and land uses surrounding the airport have all changed. That’s why the airport is updating its current Part 150 program: “to ensure that current measures are effective and to determine whether new measures are warranted.”
The Airport Authority has contracted with noise consultants from Harris Miller Miller & Hanson Inc. (HMMH) of Burlington, Massachusetts, to work with airport staff and with members of the community to “fine-tune” PTIA’s current noise mitigation program.
Get over it. If you do too much mitigation as a passenger you will experience aircraft carrier take-offs and landings. That may thrill you or not, personally prefer the more gentle ones we have to those of the noise mitigated ones of SFO. The other choice is shutting down the airport. Most people moved to areas around the airport after the airport was here, so it’s not like they didn’t know beforehand. We love living under the flight path and can tell the weather by the number of planes landing and taking off. Our dog even knows the difference between light aircraft or heavy flying over to land. I love our airport being just 20 minutes away from home instead of an hour and a half drive away with long uber and taxi lines and little or no parking. Leave good things alone.