April 23--The battle over whether to build a new runway at the Hillsboro Airport continues.
On Monday, the non-profit Oregon Aviation Watch and a group of affiliated citizens filed a petition asking the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to review the Federal Aviation Administration's finding that a third runway would have no significant environmental impact.
The FAA ruled in February that the runway project "is consistent with existing national environmental policies and...other applicable environmental requirements." The airport is owned and operated by the Port of Portland.
But Miki Barnes, the president of Oregon Aviation Watch and a longtime critic of the airport, disputed the FAA's findings.
"That runway has the potential to double the capacity at the Hillsboro Airport," said Barnes, who is one of the appeal's petitioners. "And already many people around the area are feeling inundated by noise as well as lead pollution and other toxins."
A year ago, dozens of city residents voiced both support and opposition to the project at the Hillsboro Civic Center.
-- Luke Hammill
Copyright 2014 - The Oregonian, Portland, Ore.
