Local opinion: Public should comment on US Air Force flight proposals
According to its draft environmental impact statement, the U.S. Air Force intends to increase flight training such that it will expand flights to wilderness areas across Arizona and New Mexico. Within the two states, the proposed training will bring low-altitude training flights across 1.2 million acres, including the Chiricahuas in Arizona and the Gila Wilderness in New Mexico.
A tremendous amount of noise will result from the expansion of these training flights, and this noise will disrupt delicate wilderness areas.
Of course, right now, most people are reeling under the bombardment of polls, election results and bloviators great and small. However, one important lesson we have learned from this election cycle is the importance of remaining involved across the political spectrum. We can appreciate the value of remaining engaged more than we have in decades. This engagement must extend to the causes that impact our lives and the well-being of the land that gives us life. It is in this spirit that I would call on the public to step up and protect the wilds against the powerful noise and intrusion proposed by the U.S. Air Force's expanded training program.
I might object to the intrusion of jets and sonic booms on the peace and tranquility I would like to enjoy on a pleasant hike in the wilds. However, noise has a far graver impact than to merely inconvenience my adventures. What precious little land that remains holds the DNA bank of life on earth. The lands and the life on it are vital to the continuance of our planet's biological functions.
Authors of a National Institute of Health , "Neurobehavioral Alterations from Noise Exposure in Animals: A Systematic Review," explain that, "Noise can increase the risk of death by modifying the delicate balance between predator and prey, interfering with the use of sounds in communication, especially in relation to reproduction and navigation" (Giulio Arcangeli, et al 2023). The authors' in-depth analyses identify how noise impacts the food chain and life at the cellular level. The full goes into detail regarding the impact of noise on wildlife. It is available at the NIH web site.
The intrusive jet noise also impacts the livelihoods of people doing business in our magnificent Southwestern environment. Kathy Knapp, who works at an inn located adjacent to the Gila Wilderness in New Mexico, describes her experience of flight noise so:
A couple of weeks ago, I was serving breakfast to guests staying at the Silver Creek Inn in Mogollon. They had commented on how marvelous it was to find such an oasis of peacefulness. Then we heard what I thought was the screeching of tires and a loud BOOM. I feared a speeding motorist had hit another vehicle in the narrow street that runs through Mogollon. We all ran outside. There we saw our neighbors, equally concerned, looking UP. That's when we realized it was a flyover. We were all shaken.
The Air Force already has vast amounts of land in both states dedicated to training pilots and the testing of its military operations. This includes 1.9 million acres of Sonoran Desert, according to the Center for Biological Diversity.
Many smart, smart people fill the ranks of the U.S. Air Force who can figure out how to train pilots without turning the last vestiges of our southwestern ecosystems into a test range.
If you would like to extend your concern over changes in training flights proposed by the Air Force, you may send a message before November 12.
Linda Bayless is a retired teacher, having taught at Nogales High School.
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