Airport Challenges

When we think about how airports impact the environment, what is the first thing that comes to mind? Exactly, its way too loud! Maybe that's not the first thing that comes to mind, but its a serious environmental impact to consider. Researchers have shown that exposure to excessively loud noises can cause changes in blood pressure and cause sleep problems. I've seen this or heard this first hand. Early in my military career I was stationed at a F-22 base and since I was young in rank I lived on base in the dorms. The nights the F-22 participated in night flying training I had trouble staying asleep. They had certain rules the pilots had to follow like not flying too low but we could still hear them. The base had to send out a notice to the nearby town that notifying them that they were conducting night training operations. Talk about a hit to operational security but that was the agreement the base had with the town. Living near an airport where there are constant flights in and out of the city can be troublesome for the people living around it. A study done in the European Union estimates that 20% of Europe's population (roughly 80 million people) are exposed to airport noise levels it considers unhealthy and unacceptable (West 2019). 

So, what do we do about airport noise? That's a tough one because a lot of airports are built in the middle of the city. The thousands of people that surround the airport are victims to the constant noise that is coming from the hundreds of jets daily. Some cities like Denver, CO have the airport outside of the city limits which is a good thing but it looks like houses are slowly being built closer and closer. I think the best thing to do is make people aware of the noise issues and let them make a decision on whether to live near a airport or not.

References:

West, L. (n.d.). Learn about the health effects of airport noise and pollution. Retrieved March 25, 2021, from https://www.treehugger.com/health-effects-of-airport-noise-and-pollution-1204091