San Diego County daily runs McClellan-Palomar Airport within Carlsbad. In its 2021 Palomar EIR, county said that lead emissions from more than 85,000 annual Palomar small aircraft flights need not trouble you. Should it?
The Conflicting EPA and County Lead Data
In 2012, the U.S. EPA and county tested Palomar lead emissions. EPA found issues. County did not. Instead, county doubted the EPA testing method. ( 2021 Palomar PEIR, Appendix F, Air Quality, p. 2-13 )
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Should Carlsbad Residents Care?
Due to lead-linked health risks, California banned lead from auto fuel in 1992. As you played Boyz II Men End of the Road and Billy Ray Cyrus Achy Breaky Heart on your radios, thousands of gas stations complied. But Palomar aviation pumps kept pumping leaded fuel.
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About 60% to 80% of Palomar flights use leaded fuel. Hence, from 1960 to 2020, more than 3,000,000 Palomar aircraft flights spewed lead over homes, schools, and playgrounds near Palomar. [Assuming an average of 60,000 flights per year over 60 years.]
Many homeowners, including those in the manufactured housing parcels on the eastern approach to Palomar and in Vista have reported aircraft soot fouling their homes and cars.
Can the FAA Aviation Environmental Design Tool Help?
The last Patch Pinocchio article noted that the FAA in July 2022 finally answered AEDT computer model (Aviation Environmental Design Tool) questions asked in October 2021. AEDT question 32 asked: "Can the AEDT produce a report showing how much lead that propeller aircraft release on San Diego County areas?”
The FAA said the AEDT model could calculate these Palomar lead emissions. Just multiply the total leaded aviation fuel used at Palomar by the lead content of the fuel.
In short, county could easily reckon the lead overhead rather than simply diss EPA numbers. County could also test soil samples from schools and parks near Palomar.
Will the Board of Supervisors ask county staff for a report? Or is an EIR just a paper tree filed in a dark cabinet?
