T.F. Green Airport Improvement Program - FEIS Chapters - PVD

T.F. Green Airport Improvement ProgramEnvironmental Impact Statement and Final Section 4(f) Evaluation• Section 4.17, Light Emissions and Visual Environment; and• Section 4.18, Natural Resources, Energy Supply and Sustainable Design.The environmental resource category of ‘Wild and Scenic Rivers’ is not included in this assessment becausethere are no wild or scenic rivers within the State of Rhode Island, as defined by the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of1968. 146The Project Area is the same for each category throughout this FEIS and is defined as the area where direct,physical impacts to on-airport and surrounding land uses could occur. The Project Area includes the currentT.F. Green Airport property and land immediately adjacent to the Airport. T.F. Green Airport occupies1,100 acres of land and is generally bounded by Airport Road to the north, Industrial Drive to theeast/southeast, Main Avenue (State Route 113) to the south, and Post Road (U.S. Route 1) to the west. The Areaalso includes additional land north of the present airport property, and areas of land west and south of theproperty associated with Runway Protection Zones (RPZs).For each category the baseline environmental conditions within a specific Study Area are examined to provide acontext for evaluating the impacts associated with the T.F. Green Airport Improvement Program. For someenvironmental categories (Noise; Social and Socioeconomic; Surface Transportation; Air Quality; Historic,Architectural, Archaeological, and Cultural Resources; Section 4(f) and Section 6(f) Resources; Floodplains;Coastal Resources; Hazardous Materials and Solid Waste), the boundaries of the the Study Area are defined bysets of laws, regulations, or guidance specific to that environmental category.4.2 NoiseThis section briefly summarizes the methodology of conducting the noise evaluation, which is more fullydetailed in DEIS Appendix F.2, Noise Assessment Methodology, and describes the Baseline Condition for noisewithin the Airport noise Study Area to provide a context for evaluating the proposed Improvement Program.The Baseline Condition for noise is also addressed in FEIS Section 4.3, Compatible Land Use; Section 4.4, Social andEconomic, and Environmental Justice and Children’s Health and Safety Risks; Section 4.7, Historic, Architectural,Archaeological, and Cultural Resources; and Section 4.8, Section 4(f) and Section 6(f) Resources. This noise assessmentconsiders all sources of airport-related noise, including aircraft noise, ground noise associated with cargooperations, and traffic noise associated with airport-related vehicular traffic.4.2.1 MethodologyThe following briefly describes the key noise terms, the Noise Study Area, and the methodology of the aircraftnoise analysis. Other noise sources evaluated are also discussed. DEIS Appendix F.1, Introduction/Acoustics andNoise Terminology, provides detailed information on acoustics and noise terminology.146 Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968, 16 U.S.C. section 1271 et seq.Chapter 4 – Affected Environment 4-2 July 2011\\mawatr\ev\09228.00\reports\FEIS_Final_July_2011\PVD_CH04_Affected_Env_JUL_2011.doc