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Many people intimately knowledgeable about TF Green, their need to comply with environmental law, and the (false) need we need an 8700' runway, agree with the writer's comment that "RIAC SHOULD FOCUS ON BUILDING THE GLYCOL (TREATMENT) PLANT: AS A PRIORITY. IT IS TRUE

For those not familiar, TF Green airport operators have been dumping toxic chemicals from aircraft deicing and other operations, into the watershed east of the airport, for years, allegedly in violation of state and federal laws. This harms the environment, and is harmful to property owners east of the airport and fish life in the brook and Narragansett Bay. Because of this, RIAC is now required by law to build a glycol pre-treatment plant to process chemicals used to de-ice aircraft. The processed material will be sent to the Warwick Sewer Plant as waste that will then help the WSA with its processing of wastewater from the community.

Many agree with the Op/Ed writer that building the plant "will help fix the pollution problem and create some construction jobs for union people."

IN FACT: (attention union business managers!) The Glycol Pre-Treatment Plant will likely create more individual jobs than the runway extension itself. The glycol processing plant should be given priority over the runway, it will reduce pollution to the watersheds east of the airport, improving the quality of life for people living along the watershed between the airport and Narragansett bay, and the treatment plant IS REQUIRED by both the RIDEM and the MOU Agreement between the City of Warwick and RIAC. It will potentially create more individual jobs than the runway extension.

During the EIS process, there were updates to the aircraft fleet mix. The more current fleet utilizes newer aircraft that are more efficient on take off thereby requiring less runway than what was originally proposed based on older aircraft, which are practically all no longer in the fleet serving TF Green as they have been replaced with the more efficient aircraft, negating the need for an 8,700' runway.

With this, perhaps the union business managers will realize that with the legally mandated requirement to build the glycol pre-treatment plant and potential to create more individual jobs, hopefully the unions will lobby to move RIAC to secure funding for the glycol pre-treatment plant asap, as that project is the best probability to create union jobs asap as the design is complete and it is now out for bid. Let's all push for this.

As for Mr. Dillion's comments, would you really believe anything he says?

Remember, he was paid nearly $300,000 a year to reach certain goals.

1) To ensure the construction of an 8,700' runway (he failed to accomplish that)

2) To improve relations with residents negatively impacted by the airport (he failed to accomplish that)

3) To improve annual passenger counts (he failed to accomplish that)

4) To secure funding for the work proposed in the EIS (he failed to accomplish that)

5) To improve the profitability of TF Green (he failed to accomplish that and left us with a lower bond rating)

Note that the EIS approval did not ensure a longer runway will be constructed. It only attempted to disclose environmental impacts and anticipated mitigation.

The main problem here is the airport is a politically managed airport. Goals are based on pie in the sky dreams that ignore reality. TF Green is a super "regional" airport. Trying to make it an "international" airport when that defies reality of national and regional economics and common sense, will only leave TF Green over invested in infrastructure and fixed costs that it cannot afford, with those costs being passed to local passengers, making it more expensive to use TF Green, and the end result that is already happening, is that TF Green will continue to lose local market share to Connecticut and Massachusetts airports Bradley and Logan. Its already happening.

Summary:

Build the glycol pre-treatment plant now, it's designed and ready to build. It will help residents living around the watershed east of the airport, it will help the Warwick Sewer Authority, it will help the unions now!

From: RIAC should move ahead with glycol treatment plant

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