July 11, 2016

Members of Mass. Congressional Delegation Request Study of Airplane Noise Pollution

Text of the letter available here (PDF)

Washington, DC- United States Senators Elizabeth Warren and Edward J. Markey, along with Representatives Michael Capuano, Stephen F. Lynch, and Katherine Clark, have sent a letter calling on the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to conduct a study about the effects of air traffic noise and pollution on human health. The letter notes the recent significant spikes in the number of noise complaints logged by the Massachusetts Port Authority, as well at airports around the country.

"In Massachusetts, the noise increase goes well beyond the threshold of being an annoyance, and there is growing concern in our communities that aircraft noise could be impacting human health," the delegation members wrote. "While there has been some research in this area, we believe this issue merits much more independent and high quality objective research to help Congress assess this problem and take appropriate action."

The letter asks NAS to convene a multidiscipline expert committee to conduct a study to determine the causes of these increased noise reports and the health impacts of increased jet noise in these communities, and to author a report with recommendations on how to address the problem.

Read a PDF copy of the letter here.

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