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| BOGUE FIELD COMMITTEE http://www.geocities.com/boguefieldcommittee P. O. Box 5232 Emerald Isle, NC 28594 Phone: 252-354-3786 E:Mail: [email protected] March 23, 2001 TO: ECJLUS POLICY COMMITTEE. The first goal of the Joint Land Use Study (JLUS) program is to: Protect the health, safety, and welfare of the civilian and military communities near the MCAS Cherry Point and Bogue Field. (Pg 4.). The JLUS involves spending of taxpayer money and is therefore subject to open, public scrutiny by citizens and responsible elected representatives. As citizens and residents of Carteret County, we feel that the concerns of our membership (200+) are not being addressed properly by the USMC and the local officials. Issues concerning safety and military accountability should not be brushed aside by public officials because they don't agree with the inquiry. At the January 30, 2001, meeting of the Policy Committee of the ECJLUS, the Bogue Field Committee requested a moratorium prohibiting all flights over Emerald Isle and low level flights over populated areas until the USMC addressed issues regarding safety to the residents and tourists. Our request was accompanied by documentation of the AV-8B Harrier safety record including the safety concerns raised by the Harrier Review Panel (HaRP) due in part to lack of funding, training and maintenance. Four days later, another Harrier crashed at Cherry Point. We are sure that the USMC is concerned about safety but this event increased our anxiety. The safety of residents and tourists is still at issue and the forum created by the USMC is the JLUS. The basis for the JLUS is the Air Installation Compatible Use Zone Program (AICUZ) developed by the Department of the Navy (DoN). The release of the Draft Update of the 1988 AICUZ has been delayed numerous times and presently the date of release is unknown. The (DoN) AICUZ Guidelines recognize safety concerns of development under the flight patterns of military aircraft by creating accident potential zones (APZ). A map in the draft AICUZ 2001 designates the entire flight path over Emerald Isle and populated areas of Carteret County as an APZ. The existing development in this APZ of residences, town houses, condos, shopping centers, a church, a daycare center, movie theaters, restaurants, gas stations and auditoriums is classified as incompatible due to density and concentration of people. Evaluations conducted to support the Update are necessary to understand the decisions with regard to noise and safety and are paramount to the JLUS Policy Committee and the public in general. The Bogue Field Committee representing concerned citizens has sent questions to the USMC. Immediate response to the inquiry is needed in order for the technical committee or the sponsor to evaluate the scope of the work. Town and County elected leaders of Carteret County need to question a proposed expenditure of more than $19,500 and some portion of the State and ECC expenditure of $95,000 of taxpayer money to support a program to study how to prevent development in an area of Carteret County that is already built out. A copy of the questions sent to the USMC, is provided to all members of the policy committee to facilitate meaningful discussion at the JLUS meeting Wednesday, March 28, 2001. We expect you as our representatives to the JLUS to be pro-active in assuring that the answers are delivered by the USMC expeditiously. The Bogue Field Committee cc: selected news media |
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