A multi-lane highway, straight through West Marin, was proposed over 30 years ago to facilitate development. It was hard fought and rejected. In 2000, however, that highway has become a daily reality for many of our communities.
The difference between the 70s and now is that the highway is in the air over West Marin rather than on the ground. The traffic on what is termed The Point Reyes Flyway, until recently, was relatively benign. All that changed in early 1999, when flight paths were shifted to put more and more flights, often vertically stacked, either flying over the Point Reyes/Tomales Bay area or following a holding pattern while they wait for clearance into the airports. Marin is taking on the flight profile of San Mateo county.
It is estimated that over 240 flights a day now use this corridor on the way to land at San Francisco International Airport. Flights heading for Oakland International are also added to the huge mix in the air above us, but hard data is difficult to come by. Number of flights, type of aircraft and flight levels are only estimates because neither the airports nor the FAA have cooperated in providing residents with concrete and verifiable information on what is going on above their heads night and day.
What can be verified by simple observation is that many flights are flying as low or lower than 5,000 feet. A heavy percentage of the overflights are also verifiable as cargo flights, which are generally louder and come through at night. The very loud and invasive Turbo Props are used on this route as well, providing a grinding roar. Flight maps obtained from airport sources show each route over West Marin as a thin, black line. On the maps I have seen, the thin, black lines create a solid black mass over coastal Marin and much of the rest of Marin as well.
The flight beacon that attracts these flights is on the top of Point Reyes Hill, above the town of Inverness. The majority of the flights make a turn at that beacon and then fly down the Inverness Ridge/Tomales Bay corridor toward Bolinas and on to San Francisco. A second beacon exists in Sausalito, which creates a route through the central Marin corridor for northern destinations. Added to that mix, other flights entering or leaving the FAA "Bay TRACON" area air traffic control region are routed over various flight paths within the borders of Marin.
What all this means for residents of large areas of West Marin, from Chileno Valley to Bolinas, as well as other parts of Marin, is that the air above them has become alive with aircraft noise 24 hours a day. The Point Reyes National Seashore, at ground zero of the southbound Point Reyes Flyway, is being severely impacted. I took a hike today up Mt. Wittenberg and then to the beach. There were very few moments without the engine noise of overhead aircraft. Loud aircraft noise has become a daily and constant fact of life for visitors and residents alike around the park. The fact that the Point Reyes National Seashore was created by the Congress of the United States as a designated wilderness area, with the stated purpose of providing a "sanctuary" for people and wildlife alike, has provided no protection at all from FAA route changes.
So how DID all this happen? How did West Marin communities and the Point Reyes National Seashore and Golden Gate National Recreation Area suddenly become ground zero for massive amounts of stacked overflights day and night.
There are several known facts: One is that political pressure necessitated reduced flight impacts over south Bay communities. In early 1999, a group was formed by political leaders in San Mateo county and named The Point Reyes Subcommittee. No one from either West or East Marin were informed or included. Instead, members were from Atherton, Menlo Park, Portola Valley, Half Moon Bay and SFO. Their charge was to review the advantages and disadvantages of various options to identify potential noise mitigations for southern San Mateo County cities and recommend a course of action for the FAA and the airports. That chosen course of action is likely a good part of what Marin is dealing with today.
There has been a drastic redistribution of flights to Marin skies. But this is only the beginning. Plans are already proposed to lower the flight ceiling over Mt. Tam to 4,000 feet above sea level. Since Mt. Tam's East Peak is 2,751 feet above sea level, that means that flights will be only 1,249 feet above that. Those living around Mt. Tam, especially nestled onto hillsides, are in for a very rude awakening soon if the plan is implemented.
Another fact is that air traffic in general has increased substantially. Although passenger traffic has increased steadily, the real explosion in traffic has come from cargo flights, facilitated by NAFTA, GATT and e-commerce. UPS and FedEx now have a special section of OAK to inhabit, with many of their flights over Marin skies.
The bottom line is that Marin, with emphasis on southern and coastal Marin, is the route of choice these days for increasing traffic. With the coming expansion of San Francisco International Airport, as well as that being planned for Oakland International and even San Jose International, along with talk of a new airport in Sonoma county, the noise level and number of flights is programmed already to further increase dramatically. New tracking technology allows the FAA to pinpoint exactly where each flight should be on its approach or departure. That means that the FAA can opt to stack flights closely together over both the Point Reyes and Sausalito beacons. As one FAA employee stated off the record, there will really be no limit to just how many aircraft could be moved through Marin soon.
The issue of flight intrusion into the life of our communities and parks is more complex that just the annoying noise level. Questions need to be answered regarding the toxic chemicals and proven carcinogens released over our heads by aircraft engines, and the unresponsiveness of the FAA to community concerns on both health and quality of life issues. The degradation of our national park should also be on the table before any expansion plans are approved for the airports. Marin needs to participate fully in all aspects of decision making on any expansions.
What can we do? The first thing we can do is realize we can reverse the trend of dumping flights on Marin. The monolithic myth maintained by the FAA, and the political machinations of San Mateo County, can be breached if enough people speak up and complain. The Marin County Board of Supervisors, right now, is deciding how they should deal with this massive increase in overflights. At the moment, the county has no say on what happens in its skies. Senators Boxer and Feinstein, along with Congresswoman Woolsey, need to also be pushed to aggressively pursue a goal of both raising the allowable flight levels and moving the majority of flights over water rather than over land.
A passive response to being "dumped" on will result in a future as the "county next to SFO." A number of environmental organizations are gearing up to address this problem. One that has been specifically formed to take action on this issue is the West Marin Coalition on Aircraft Noise at Box 960 in Inverness, CA 94937. There are plans for a table in front of the visitor center at Point Reyes National Seashore to give out information and obtain signatures to stop the noise. The Sierra Club has also formed a subcommittee on the issue, and could be contacted. We have the means to take back our Skies if enough people demand action.
County Supervisors: 499 7331 FAX 499 3645; Steve Kinsey email: skinsey@marin.org, Hal Brown : hbrown@marin.org, Annette Rose: arose@marin.org, Cynthia Murray: cmurray@marin.org, and John Kress: jkress@marin.org
Elected Representatives:
Rep Lynn Woolsey (415) 507 9554 email: lynn.woolsey@mail.house.gov
Senator Barbara Boxer: (415) 403 0100 email: senator@boxer.senate.gov
Senator Dianne Feinstein: (415) 536 6868 email: senator@feinstein.senate.gov.