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The F-35 Environmental Impact Statement reveals that the Air Force's plan to bring 72 F-35 fighters to the Boise, Idaho airport would subject almost 7000 acres and over 10,000 citizens to noise levels so loud that the area would be designated by FAA regulations, Not Suitable For Residential Use. Several local folks not familiar with the EIS have questioned the 65 DNL noise contour and the EIS itself. More disturbing than the ignorance of a few fellow citizens is the misleading and incomplete nature of the EIS report. The 65 DNL noise contour is a sleight of hand based on averaging all sound in a given area over twenty-four hours. Nowhere in the 1180 pages of the EIS does it actually state how loud the F-35s' noise would be in the schools, day care centers, parks and homes in the flight path. For an aircraft that is eight times louder than the 18 A-10s currently located at the Boise airport, that is a serious flaw.
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DraftJanuary 2012
F-35A Training Basing Environmental Impact StatementPage 14 Executive Summary
6.4 Boise AGS Alternative – Environmental Consequences
Noise and Land Use. The Boise Air Terminal Airport is a joint use airfield that currently accommodates several varieties of civilian and military aircraft. Military aircraft based at Boise AGS include A-10, H-64, and H-60 aircraft. Table 6 lists the population and acreage under various noise contours near Boise AGS. The 65 decibel (dB) day–night average sound level (DNL) noise contours for each aircraft scenario are presented in Figure 2.
Figure 2. Land Use and Noise Contours in Areas Surrounding Boise AGS, Baseline Conditions and F-35A Scenarios
DraftJanuary 2012
F-35A Training Basing Environmental Impact StatementExecutive Summary Page 15
Table 6. Population and Acreage Under Noise Contours Near Boise AGS,
Baseline Conditions and F-35A ScenariosContour Interval
(dB DNL)
Population Affected(Off-Installation/Airport)
Total Area Affected(Off-Installation/Airport)
Number Change Acres ChangeBaseline Conditions
Total >65 142 N/A 89 N/A65–69 131 N/A 82 N/A70–74 11 N/A 7 N/A75–79 0 N/A 0 N/A80–84 0 N/A 0 N/A≥85 0 N/A 0 N/A
Scenario B1 (24 Aircraft)Total >65 3,104 2,962 3,032 2,943
65–69 2,157 2,026 2,357 2,27570–74 590 579 519 51275–79 289 289 129 12980–84 68 68 24 24≥85 0 0 3 3
Scenario B2 (48 Aircraft)Total >65 5,470 5,328 5,038 4,947
65–69 3,894 3,763 3,395 3,31370–74 955 944 1,320 1,31375–79 457 457 253 25380–84 142 142 60 60≥85 22 22 10 10
Scenario B3 (72 Aircraft)Total >65 10,119 9,977 6,958 6,864
65–69 7,521 7,390 4,411 4,32970–74 1,755 1,744 2,012 2,00575–79 530 530 406 40680–84 258 258 108 108≥85 55 55 21 21
Note: See Draft EIS, Table BO 3.2–2.
Walmart
HillcrestCountry Club
Costco
West Junior High
School
Frank Church High
School
Indian LakesGolf Club
Cole
Maple G
rove
Pleasant Valley
Curtis
Orchard
Victory
Desert Ave
Gowen
0 1 mile 2 miles
Vista
Broadway
SimplotSports
Complex
MicronTechnology
FredMeyer
Amity
BergesonFederal W
ay“Not Suitable For Residential Use” Based on the Air Force’s Environmental Impact Statement, (EIS), 72 F-35A aircraft operating out of Boise would expose 6,958 acres of property to so much noise that the
area would be designated by FAA regula-tions Not Suitable For Residential Use.
(NSFRU) (65 decibel DNL)New area that would be designated Not Suitable For Residential UseCurrent area designated as Not Suitable For Residential Use
Overland
Gowen FieldAir National Guard Base
■ www.saveourvalleynow.org/■ www.f-35atrainingeis.com/■ Boise Air Terminal Airport Air Guard Station 208-422-5268
M
ore Informationœ
HillcrestElementary
Owyhee-HarborElementary
“Where did you get that noise contour map?”Thanks for asking! By law the Air Force is required to study the impact the F-35A will have on com-
munities where it will be based. Called the F-35A Training Basing Environmental Impact Statement, (EIS) the study is a legal document available for download from the Air Force website: www.f-35atrainingeis.com or as a 1180-page printed book available for study at the public library.
The noise contour used in the F-35 Facts and Impacts flyer was traced from the B3 scenario (72 aircraft) contour found on pages 14 and 15 of the EIS Executive Summary. Curiously, you’ll note there are also two smaller contours in the original map showing the DNL levels for fewer aircraft (scenarios B1 and B2.) While the Air Force has decided that it has to base 72 jets per site for reasons of cost effectiveness they’ve managed to obscure the purpose of the map somewhat by leaving in the now-irrelevant noise contours for the smaller numbers of jets.
The F-35A Training Basing En-vironmental Impact Statement examines all four F-35A sites.
Pages 14 and 15 from the EIS showing noise contours of Not Suitable For Residential Use (65 DNL) resulting from F-35s in Boise
Noise contour map used for F-35 Facts and Impacts flyer
