Legislation recently re-introduced in the U.S. Senate would study the various health impacts of air traffic noise and pollution.
The Air Traffic Noise and Pollution Expert Consensus Act would direct the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to convene a committee of experts to conduct the study.
U.S. Sens. Ed Markey (D-MA) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) introduced the bill. They initially introduced the Air Traffic Noise and Pollution Expert Consensus Act in 2019 to address air noise and pollution.
“Communities across our nation are affected by noise and pollution from air traffic,” Markey said. “Industry and advocates alike need more information about the health impacts of this pollution to help us take action to address it. The Air Traffic Noise and Pollution Expert Consensus Act will highlight the critical information needed to understand and tackle the concerns of affected communities in Massachusetts and beyond.”
Massachusetts residents submitted more than 15 times the number of noise disturbance complaints in 2022 than they did in 2013 before the FAA implemented more concentrated and efficient flight paths near Boston Logan International Airport.
Earlier this year, U.S. Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA) introduced a companion bill in the U.S. House of Representatives.