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

T.F. Green Airport Improvement ProgramEnvironmental Impact Statement and Final Section 4(f) Evaluationof Farmland of Statewide Importance on the Confreda Farm (Figure 5-48). The new Integrated Cargo Facilitywould directly impact approximately an additional 3.8 acres of forested Farmland of Statewide Importance.Indirect ImpactsFully Relocated Airport Road would be constructed through the northern portion of the Confreda Farm. Indirectlosses of 8.2 acres of Farmland of Statewide Importance on the Confreda Farm would result as smaller strips andplots of active farmland would be separated from the main portion of the remaining farm south of this road andwould no longer be accessible. The alignment of Fully Relocated Airport Road was designed to avoid impacts to farmoutbuildings, and farming operations could continue on remaining portions of the Confreda Farm. Approximately23 acres south of Fully Relocated Airport Road would remain contiguous to the existing farm buildings.The alignment of Fully Relocated Airport Road would increase the road frontage through the Confreda Farm,potentially making the farmland more suitable for conversion to other forms of development. However, FullyRelocated Airport Road would have limited or no roadway access along this frontage which may reduce itsvalue for commercial development. Reduction in the size of the Confreda Farm from its current 42.6 acres(of which 39.4 acres are Farmland of Statewide Importance) to 20.6 acres (all of which is Farmland of StatewideImportance) could diminish the economic viability of continued farming operations, potentially leading to itssale for development.Significant Impact: While Alternative B2 would impact Farmland of Statewide Significance, the impacts would notbe significant the site received a score of 125 on the Farmland Conversion Impact Rating form.5.16.4.3 Alternative B4Alternative B4 would not require the full relocation of Airport Road. It would include a new Integrated CargoFacility but at a different location than Alternative B2. No project elements would directly or indirectly impactFarmland of Statewide Importance (Figure 5-48). Alternative B4 would not result in direct, indirect, orcumulative impacts to Farmland of Statewide Importance.5.16.5 Short-term Impacts from Temporary Construction ActivitiesAlternatives B2 and B4 would have no temporary construction impacts on Farmland of Statewide Importance.5.16.6 Cumulative ImpactsAccording to the USDA and the RIDOA, the percentage of land area classified as farmland within Rhode Islandhas steadily decreased over the years due to urban encroachment and other development pressures. 444 Censusdata provided by the USDA reveals a 72 percent decrease in the statewide area of farmland between the years1850 445 and 1974. 446 The RIDOA reports a further decline in farmland between 1985 and 2003 of almost 17,000acres, with only approximately 33,000 acres of farmland remaining statewide. 447444 Soil Survey of Rhode Island, 1981.445 U.S. Census of Agriculture: 1959. Vol. 1, Counties, Part 5, Rhode Island, Washington, D.C. 1960.446 Census of Agriculture, Rhode Island State and County Data, U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Vol. 1, Part 39. Washington, D.C. 1977.447 Rhode Island Agricultural Digest 2003. RIDEM, Division of Agriculture and Resource Marketing, Providence, Rhode Island.Chapter 5 - Environmental Consequences 5-257 July 2011\\mawatr\ev\09228.00\reports\FEIS_Final_July_2011\PVD_CH05_Environmental_Cons_JUL_2011.doc