Airport Expansion, Burrowing Owls, Coyote Valley
Are you a Palo Alto Resident who is passionate about birds and nature? Do you have a passion for parks, open space, and recreation? The Parks and Recreation Commission (PRC) advises the City Council on matters pertaining to Open Space, Parks, Golf, and Recreation. Special Recruitment is now open for one seat on the PRC. The open seat is an unexpired term position ending on March 31st, 2026. If this sounds like an opportunity for you or someone you know, then volunteer as a member of the Parks and Recreation Commission. Apply ONLINE by October 6, 2024. Please contact Advocate@scvas.org if you have questions.
Palo Alto Airport Expansion: Great news and a request
The Palo Alto City Council rejected all four expansion proposals that aimed to extend the City's airport’s runway into the Baylands Nature Preserve by the duck pond. Please email Palo Alto’s Mayor Greer Stone and the City Council (city.council@CityofPaloAlto.org) and thank them for protecting our baylands and the birds that depend on them.
The prospect of extending the runways and expanding taxiways and parking at the Palo Alto airport drew a strong and wide opposition. Our letter to the city council was joined by 14 organizations that represent environmental justice, Climate change, birds and nature. Dozens of people, including the Honorable Enid Pearson, Emily Renzel and elected officials from East Palo Alto and Menlo Park all said no to expansion.
Among other concerns, our letter stated, “280 bird species have been recorded in the Baylands preserve. Some of them, including the common yellowthroat, the rail and the Alameda song sparrow, depend on the lagoon habitat … Encroaching into this habitat by filling the wetlands and/or by moving airport activity and operations closer to their habitat … would harm these species and the many others who rely for their survival on Palo Alto’s preservation of the Baylands”. We expressed opposition to any expansion or increased activity at the airport that would degrade habitat in the Baylands and increase noise, lead deposition and greenhouse gas emissions.
The Council’s discussion made it clear that extending the runway into the baylands was a non-starter because it would require a vote of residents to un-dedicate parkland. The discussion therefore focused on possible expansion within the airport boundary. Some council members were open to minor expansion while others cautioned that any expansion could accommodate larger planes, increase aircraft traffic, or subject the city to additional commitments to the FAA.
Of the many topics brought up by the public and discussed at the meeting, perhaps the most critical is the continued sale of Leaded Aviation Fuel (AVGAS) at the Palo Alto airport. Lead emissions have no safe levels. The EPA determined that emissions from aircraft engines that operate on leaded fuel may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public health and welfare. Not only people, but also plants and animals in the wetlands are harmed by lead emissions. Unfortunately, Federal and State laws mandate sale of AVGAS in Palo Alto and other airports that have received Federal (FAA) funding until 2031.
We applaud Mayor Stone and the Palo Alto city council for directing staff not to consider extending the runway. We hope that any work contemplated within the airport boundary will not increase impacts to birds and the people who enjoy them, or the level of noise, greenhouse gas emissions and lead deposition in the natural and human communities that surround the airport.