The Air Force has issued a revised draft report on the impact of bringing the F-35 jet fighter to Burlington. The report is a follow up to last year’s Environmental Impact Statement.
The Air Force says the Vermont Air National Guard facility at Burlington International Airport is a preferred location for the new generation of planes, which have been troubled by delays, mechanical difficulties and cost overruns.
Like the earlier draft the revised report says the F-35 would increase the size of the area affected by noise levels averaging 65 decibels or greater. The government says noise levels above 65 decibels are incompatible with residential areas.
The new draft statement weighs the impact of two scenarios.
The first, which the guard says is the most likely one, would involve 18 F-35s based in Burlington.
Under that scenario 2,061 more people, and nearly one thousand more households would be subjected to noise levels averaging 65 decibels or greater.
A second scenario, with additional planes, would expose more than 3,000 additional individuals the higher decibel levels.
The potential impact of the increased noise on health, quality of life and property values has sparked a debate in Chittenden County over bringing the F-35s to Burlington.
The Vermont National Guard and many in the business community argue that the plane is critical to the future of the guard and the local economy.
They also say steps can be taken to reduce noise and they point out that based on the training schedule, the noise will only last for about 6 minutes per day.
The report notes that the Burlington airport is one of two preferred alternatives. But it says the McEntire base in South Carolina is the preferred alternative from an environmental perspective because of a decrease in the number of people that would be exposed to excessive noise levels.
The Air Force is expected to make a final decision later this year.
