Since 1999, SFO aircraft arrivals have increased 23 percent, but SFO arrival traffic over our communities has increased by 200 percent or up to 160 flights per day.  SFO and the FAA have shifted air traffic from other set flight paths onto the communities of Portola Valley, Ladera and Skyline Boulevard.

            San Mateo County has identified these communities as regional natural areas. Increased air traffic and aircraft noise disturb the natural habitat and diminish Portola Valley, Ladera, and Skyline Blvd. as environmental resources for the County.

            In addition, the FAA proposes to implement the Next Gen OAPM project by November 2014, which will redirect additional SFO arrival air traffic over our communities at potentially lower altitudes (SFO projects a 21% increase in arriving aircraft by 2019). This will increase our aircraft noise and tax our environment even more dramatically. 

            We request the support of Senators Boxer and Feinstein, and Congresswomen Eshoo and Speier, in seeking relief from the increasing air traffic in our communities with a credible plan to resolve these issues:

1.  The FAA and SFO should take immediate steps to reduce the amount of  vectored traffic over our communities to conform to the historical Big Sur 2 and Point Reyes routes, as discussed at the meeting with Congresswomen Speier and Eshoo.

2.  The FAA’s OAPM project should not be implemented until additional analysis has been conducted to evaluate actual air and on-the-ground noise pollution and its effects on our communities and surrounding open spaces. These results should be made available to the public for comment.

3.  The FAA and SFO should require commercial aircraft on arrival into SFO to comply with the 2001 agreement with Congresswoman Eshoo and the FAA’s own air traffic regulations to maintain an altitude of at least 8,000 feet over the Woodside VOR and 5,000 feet over the Menlo Interchange.