Staff Editorial Guilford College does not exist in a bubble. We are in every way part of the real world. The late-night planes may never waken anyone here on campus who questions this truth. Students will find similar development and quality of life issues across America.
The FedEx hub proposed for the Piedmont Triad International Airport (PTIa) was discussed on April 11 at New Garden Friends Meeting in a forum hosted by The Guilfordian. If there was anything to be learned from attending it, it is that our Greensboro neighbors face the same struggles as Guilford students do.
Guilford students often complain about the administration making decisions that affect our everyday lives without our input or approval. The residents of Guilford County are finding that decisions that could strongly affect their lives are being made without them.
Troubling issues surround the proposed expansion of the PTIA, and since Guilford College is located only three miles away from the airport, these should be our concerns as well. Even if you are far away from Guilford when the planes begin flying, by ignoring this issue you will be guilty of the malaise that often allows development to go unchecked and causes avoidable damage to communities and families.
We at The Guilfordian share the concerns expressed by 46 faculty and staff members in a letter to The Greensboro News and Record, saying that the FedEx hub “threatens Guilford College’s vitality.” The letter continues, “As daily life noisier, as every trip on I-40 gets more and more congested, and as the city gets more polluted, the college is likely to a have a harder time persuading students to come here.” Why?
Chief among The Guilfordian’s concerns are noise and air pollution, both increasing problems in communities across America. Looking for a similar situation, we find Memphis Tenn., where a comparable FedEx hub is a located. Residents as far as eight miles away have successfully sued for noise compensation. At the PTIA, according to 1998 FAA data, currently less than four flights a night operate between midnight and 5:00 p.m. That number could reach 60 planes a night and, because of the increased traffic, planes may end up in circling patterns, creating even more noise.
Associated air pollution caused by the FedEx hub will create an increase of 60 tons of volatile organic compounds, and 270 tons of nitrogen oxides, according the Piedmont Quality of Life Coalition (PQLC). Each additional flight will bring carcinogens and soot that have been linked to respiratory diseases.
Guilford College students, as young and likely temporary residents of this area., may dismiss the harm done to their bodies. Children, the elderly, and asthmatics will be the most affected by the air pollution. We need only look across the street, to the Friends Home at Guilford, or to Guilford Primary, or to Wesley Long’s Pulmonary Treatment Center to remind us of our neighborly obligation to speak up.
The proposed third runway would end just 1.5 miles away from a residential area — approximately the same distance from the runway at which a FedEx cargo plane crashed in Bismark, N.D. Luckily the Bismark airport was not near a residential neighborhood.
The FedEx hub is a long-term project that would result in permanent changes for the community, and permanent risks. In 1998 there were six accidents involving FedEx flights, which often carry hazardous waste. FedEx is the largest air carrier of hazardous materials in America.
Proponents of the FedEx hub argue in terms of economic benefit versus environmental impact. This over-simplification of the issue leads people to the false conclusion that the choice is between growth with costs and no growth. The resistance to the FedEx Hub is as much about the deal itself as the details of industrialization. The proponents of the FedEx hub claim that 1500 jobs would be created, and possibly more from spinoff industries. However, in one instance a FedEx hub didn’t even hire the number of workers it promised to directly employ. If even the guaranteed jobs are not always created, how can we be sure spin-off jobs will come as well?
Often business interests affect the political process adversely and distort the truth. Why is the community expected to trust the results of the forthcoming Environmental Impact Survey when the company overseeing the survey, URS Grenier, has received contracts from FedEx for planning and designing airport facilities in Memphis and could receive future FedEx contracts?
The FedEx hub coming here will almost certainly result in a lawsuit, which is part of the problem. The system for dealing with this issue is faulty. The proponents of the FedEx hub and the media have advanced the idea that no amount of political action will affect the outcome. In truth, they might be right, but that does not mean we should ignore the issue. By accepting that there is nothing we can do, we absolve ourselves of responsibility and become part of the national malaise that allows corporations and government the ability to operate without the consent of the people. Students who want to effect change in this region should visit www.PQLC.org and www.airportnoise.com to learn more about the issue. Only together with our neighbors can we hope to ensure a future for a desirable quality of life in Greensboro.