The Lexington Minuteman
Thursday, July 5, 2001

Massport environmental draft study due on July 16

By BARBARA FORSTER, CORRESPONDENT

Massport plans to file the draft scope for the Environmental Status and
Planning Report for Hanscom Air Field with MEPA on July 16. The scope
describes what Massport wants to study. The public comment/review period,
which is expected to be 60 days, begins after the document is filed in the
Environmental Monitor, about a week after MEPA receives the draft.

Massport said no to a suggestion from Peter Enrich of the Hanscom Area Towns
Committee that the agency file the scope at the end of August and recommend
a minimum 20-day comment/review period starting immediately after Labor Day.
Nevertheless, the review period will end on the date Enrich wanted, Monday,
Sept. 24.

The official end date of Massport's proposed 60-day review period is Sept.
23, but since that is Sunday, the closing date falls on Monday.

Massport will convene a public meeting during this period in addition to an
open meeting hosted by MEPA. Both are slated for after Labor Day. According
to Massport representative Tom Ennis, MEPA typically holds an open session a
week or two before comment/review periods end.

MEPA is expected to issue a certificate seven to 10 days later. " It's MEPA'
s scope, " added Ennis. " We propose a scope, but MEPA gives us one. "

With scope in hand, Massport's consultants will begin work on the draft ESPR
in order to file the document early in 2002. During that comment/review
period, Massport will have a minimum of 10 topic-based open meetings.
Massport expects MEPA to allow a minimum of 90 days for this process MEPA
will also hold an open meeting approximately one to three weeks before the
end of the review period. " The more thorough we are in answering your
issues, the quicker we are in doing the final ESPR, " Ennis said.

According to this schedule, Massport will file the final ESPR near the end
of 2002.

Massport has also earmarked $85,000 for the Hanscom communities'
consultants. That figure is 10 percent of the estimated cost of the ESPR.

ESPRs, which occur approximately every five years, provide a snapshot of the
facility: the trends, how things have changed (since the last review), what
is projected to change as well as future plans including near- and long-term
projects and policies.


Noise work group

Mark Myles, head of the Metrics section of the Noise Work Group, recommended
that the group be continued. " We thought it was a six-month job, but it¹s
become of way of life, " he said with a smile. " We issued our report in
September 1999. Many recommendations were acted on but a number of things
remain an open issue. We'd like to see to it that the recommendations are
carried out to the greatest extent possible and to continue refining them
(where necessary). "

Myles added that many current members have already volunteered to continue
with the group.

The noise group was created in June 1997 - when the Secretary of
Environmental Affairs issued Massport a certificate for the Generic
Environmental Impact Review update for Hanscom - to examine various aviation
noise issues of interest to the communities.  Besides noise experts and
interested citizens from the four towns, the group includes representatives
from Hanscom Area Resource Team, Hanscom Field Advisory Commission, Minute
Man National Historical Park, Safeguarding the Historic Hanscom's Area's
Irreplaceable Resources, and the U.S. Air Force. The four Boards of
Selectmen each appointed one person and the Hanscom Area Towns Selectmen
sent two.


Leave the car at home

The Air Force has a full-time commuter manager to handle an additional 1,000
people relocated from the MITRE Corporation in Bedford to an on-base
facility. Rynette Simpson has been on the job for about three weeks.

The new traffic manager reported that the federal government has a program
to encourage military and civilian federal employees to use public
transportation as well as car and van pooling. Starting July 1, participants
will receive $65 per month tax-free cash reimbursements or vouchers.
Sometime next year, the amount goes up to $100.


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