Pinocchio Chronicles 18 Corrected: The FAA AEDT Silence, Part II , 307

Pinocchio 17 noted that the FAA refuses to answer questions about its AEDT model. The FAA Aviation Environmental Design Tool model. The model that County used in its 2021 Palomar EIR to tell you not to worry about a larger McClellan-Palomar Airport.

Today’s Carlsbad Air Quality News

According to USA Today, San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, California have the 6th highest ozone levels in the nation. [“Best, worst cities for air quality: California ranks among worst, East Coast is cleaner,” USA Today, April 22, 2022]

6th worst in the Nation, not in the State. According to the American Lung Association, which used EPA data. Why?

The County “Take”

What does county say about this? Well, just search the County recent McClellan-Palomar Program EIR for the word “ozone.” Results? Only one. The Acronyms and Abbreviations lists the abbreviation for ozone. Now there is an EZ to read ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT.

In fact, county discusses ozone beginning at PEIR page 3-11. County recognizes that Carlsbad is an ozone nonattainment area but nevertheless sees no ozone problem of concern resulting from up to 500,000 new Palomar passengers coming and going to Palomar.

Of course, county would note: The Interstate-5 runs through Carlsbad. So expect higher ozone levels. But heh guys and gals, the I-5 snakes through Oceanside, Del Mar, and other cities not on the American Lung Cancer list.

Why a computer search on a MAC/Word Program computer fails to ID county’s discussion of “ozone” in the PEIR text (not just Acronym table) is unclear. But this oddity reaffirms the initial point above: trusting computers and computer models without verifying accuracy is foolhardy.

The FAA “Take”

Ok, check out the FAA NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) Palomar EIS (Environmental Impact Statement) instead. You know, the EIS analyzing the county’s 20-year plan to convert Palomar from a B-II airport for smaller aircraft that can already fly to most U.S. states without refueling to a D-III airport serving aircraft to Asia.

You know, the Palomar runway extension from 4900 feet to 5700 feet that county says would cost about $112,000,000 (in 2016 pre inflation dollars).

Oh. Wait a sec. The FAA never did a Palomar 20-year plan EIS. Nor did the FAA comment much (if at all?) on the county 2021 Palomar PEIR.

Palomar’s Methane Emitting Landfills

In 1958, the county took federal grants to buy land for Palomar Airport and build the initial runway. The FAA grants forbade use of Palomar land for non-aviation purposes and especially purposes interfering with aviation. Yet from 1964 to 1976, county created 3 Palomar landfills within 1000 feet of the runway.

County never received FAA permission. How do we know? In response to federal FOIA requests and county public record act requests, neither the FAA nor the county have been able to produce any FAA or Department of the Interior letter consenting to the landfills.

Rotting Garbage and a Rotting Bureaucracy

Landfill garbage rots. Rot produces methane gas. Methane gas is highly flammable. Methane gas raises ozone levels substantially.

County installed an extensive plastic methane pipe collection system a few feet below the Palomar east end runway, a true runway end safety risk. Often this methane collection system works. But how often?

In the 2000s, Palomar had a 6-month underground landfill fire. County had to pump in liquid carbon dioxide to starve the fire of oxygen.

Are there reasons the FAA doesn’t want to answer questions about its AEDT model? (See the last Pinocchio article.) Should the new county Board of Supervisors members be asking county airport staff what the h--- the former Board of Supervisors did and hid from the public?