WHY IS THE EXTENSION NOT GOOD FOR AA?
- There are 3 aquifers under the AA Airport, which provide 25% of the water to Ann Arbor residents (Pittsfield Township water is from Detroit). If these aquifers were damaged (i.e. by lead or kerosene fuel), it would impact Ann Arbor residents.
- Local schools & governments stand to lose up to $4.5 million/year due to potential lost taxes. Ann Arbor schools cannot afford this!
- Once the runway is extended, any jet in the country will be able to land there any time of day or night! The AA Airport has estimated this will increase jet landings (& takeoffs) by 1,000/year in the 1st year & by 3,000/year within 3 years of the runway extension. This does not match Ann Arbor’s desire to be zero emission. It is not green.
- The Ann Arbor airport does not have an Instrument Landing System (ILS). And never will have one, because Willow Run is too close & they have one. This means that the jets will need to use Beacons (on the North side of town near Plymouth & Green), for guidance, so residents on the North side of Ann Arbor will also be impacted by all the jet noise.
- Ann Arbor is trying to be zero emission. But every jet emits from 2 TONS of Co2/HOUR to 8 TONS of Co2/HOUR, depending on size. (!!!)
- The city of AA has banned gas leaf blowers because they are too loud & the noise is harmful to people’s health. Imagine how much louder jets will be!!
- There are 1,000’s of Canada geese in the area immediately surrounding the AA airport. There are geese year-round. We all know (from Captain Sulley!) the damage 1 goose can do to a jet engine. Imagine a disaster like that happening over Bryant Elementary or Lawton Elementary or one of the many residential neighborhoods in the immediate area around the AA airport. Yikes!!!
- Extending the runway 750 feet toward Lohr Rd will mean jets & planes will be flying only 49 feet above Lohr when they land. Trucks on Lohr are up to 26 feet high, leaving a very small margin of error. Also, the jet noise could be VERY startling to drivers.
- Jets use Kerosene fuel, which is a Carcinogen. Do we want these jets raining kerosene fuel over the Elementary schools & residential neighborhoods around the airport?