A NOTICE IN New Jersey’s Burlington County R/C Club’s
newsletter read:
“Wanted: model airplane flying site. $500 reward!
“Specifications:
“Runway should be at least 100 x 400 [feet].
“There must be an over flight area.
“There must be an access road which remains passable during
and after rain.
“It must be far enough away from neighbors’ houses so as not
to present noise problems.”
Does that seem familiar? There are roughly 2,500 modelaircraft
clubs chartered by AMA. Most of those have at least one
available flying site, a few have access to two or more sites, and
probably an equal number have no place to fly. The loss of flying
sites is becoming prevalent, and urban expansion, zoning
regulations, and endangered-species protection are some of the
environmental causes. Many of these grounds are out of our
control.
Noise issues, lack of rules or failure to enforce rules, or
trespassing to retrieve downed aircraft can alienate those on
neighboring properties. Overflight on nearby properties or other
areas of public land that are used for other purposes (such as
baseball parks) and unsafe or even dangerous flying can lead to
the loss of a suitable site.
Unreasonable or inappropriate actions by some club
members—such as test flights early Sunday morning or breaking
in an engine without a muffler after dusk when you can’t fly
anyway—are reasons why communities choose to close flying
sites. Although they are controllable, many of these issues are
seldom addressed until it is too late.
Flying sites
June 2005 27
Superfund Sites
by Tom Gunnarson and Liz Helms
Exploring EPA
Ocean County Modelers Air Park Wiskow Field in Lakehurst NJ
was built on a landfill. Although it isn’t a Superfund site, it
shows how one might look. Photo courtesy Salvatore Piu.
The Wiskow site has a grass-and-cloth runway, six temporary
flight stations, assembly tables, and a metal patio cover.
Photo courtesy Salvatore Piu.
were fairly easy to come by in the past. It was no big deal to
drive to a field on the outskirts of town; you could get there in
roughly 15 minutes.
Today people want to “get away from it all,” so they move to
the outer edges of their towns—where those same flying sites
are. They don’t want the noise, the traffic, or the intrusion of
fliers in their “space,” even if the club owns the adjoining
property and was there first. Because of urban expansion, it is
common these days for model fliers to have to drive an hour or
more to get to their fields.
The loss of flying sites is a serious threat to the future of
aeromodeling, especially in highly populated areas. But a
yearlong project spearheaded by Joe Beshar—the AMA flyingsite
assistance coordinator for the eastern region—may soon lead
to new flying fields across the country.
There are tens of thousands of abandoned hazardous-waste sites
in our nation. Superfund—an Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) project—is the federal government’s program to clean up
those areas. Launched in 1999, under the Superfund program,
abandoned, accidentally spilled, or illegally dumped hazardous
waste that poses a current or future threat to human health or the
environment is cleaned up. A Superfund site is any land in the
country that the EPA has identified as a candidate for cleanup.
The EPA works closely with communities; Potentially
Responsible Parties (PRPs); scientists and researchers;
contractors; and state, local, tribal, and federal authorities.
Together they identify hazardous-waste sites, test the sites’
conditions, formulate cleanup plans, and clean up the sites.
The Superfund Redevelopment Program facilitates the return
of the cleaned-up land to productive use, which
can be industrial or commercial.
The sites canaccommodate factories and shopping malls; they can be used for
housing, public works facilities, transportation, and other
community infrastructure; or they can be appropriated for
ecological resources such as wildlife preserves and wetlands.
The EPA is working closely with private organizations such as
the U.S. Soccer Foundation, the National Football League, and
Major League Baseball to obtain their support for communities to
use Superfund sites for recreational purposes.
However a site is used, the community benefits because the
property is adding economic, social, or ecological value.
In June 2004 Joe Beshar began checking with government
agencies for advice about using landfills for flying model airplanes.
An extensive search eventually led him to Melissa Friedland—the
EPA Program Coordinator for Superfund—and they found a unique
win-win opportunity to support the reuse of Superfund sites
through model-aircraft activities.
Joe’s position as an AMA flying-site assistance coordinator and
his six decades of modeling experience gave him the tools to
convince the EPA that a working relationship between it and AMA
would help foster community goodwill and awareness of
aeromodeling. He was experienced at providing customized
materials and support through the Flying Site Assistance Program
that gives AMA clubs resources to open and maintain flying sites.
The result was the February 10, 2005, signing of a
Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) between AMA and the
EPA, which you can read at
www.modelaircraft.org/epaflyingsite.asp. It creates an alliance
which links Superfund communities that are interested in hosting
aeromodeling activities on their Superfund sites with the
Academy’s expertise and resources.
AMA will provide certain no-cost services to participating
Superfund communities, and the EPA will provide the Academy
with appropriate publicly available information about the
Superfund cleanup process and the Superfund Redevelopment
Initiative.
When the MOU was announced, co-signer Michael B. Cook,
who is the Director of Superfund Remediation and Technology
Innovation, said:
“I’d like to thank Joe Beshar, the Academy of Model
Aeronautics’ Flying Sites Coordinator, for recognizing the
opportunities cleaned-up Superfund sites offer to interested
communities and for stepping forward to initiate this partnership.
“The opportunities afforded by Superfund sites have inspired
Joe to look for other partners that can support the Academy’s vision
of providing opportunities for model aeronautic enthusiasts. As Joe
so aptly remarked, ‘It’s not the ground below, but the sky above,
that provides these opportunities.’”
Since the MOU was signed, EPA has
chosen 30 of 1,500
Photos as noted
Following are answers the EPA provided to basic questions
about its partnership with AMA.
What is the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
between EPA and the Academy of Model Aeronautics and
what is its purpose?
The MOU between the Academy and EPA is an alliance
which links Superfund communities interested in hosting
aeromodeling activities on their Superfund sites with the
expertise and resources of the Academy.
What is the Academy of Model Aeronautics and what does
it do?
The Academy of Model Aeronautics (‘Academy’) is a
non-profit organization dedicated to making aeromodeling
the foremost sport/hobby in the world through promotion,
development, education about, and general advancement
of modeling activities. The Academy’s priorities include:
• Representing the roughly 170,000 members nationwide from
every walk of life, economic background, and age group who are
interested in building and flying model airplanes.
• Chartering more than 2,500 model-airplane clubs across the
country. The Academy offers its chartered clubs official contest
sanctions, insurance, and assistance in getting and keeping flying
sites.
• Organizing the annual National Aeromodeling Championships
in Muncie, Indiana—the world’s largest model airplane
competition.
• Sanctioning more than 3,000 model-airplane competitions
nationwide each year, and certifying official model-flying records
on a national and international level.
• Providing a liaison between local chartered clubs and the Federal
Aviation Administration, the Federal Communications
Commission, and other government agencies, in addition to local
governments, zoning boards, and parks departments.
How do I know if it’s safe to reuse a Superfund site for
model aeronautics?
Any reuse must be consistent with the selected remedy. If
all contamination at a site is eliminated, the site is
available for unrestricted use.
At sites where protective measures are in place for wastes that
remain safeguarded in underground containment areas after the
cleanup, EPA ensures that the measures will provide adequate
protection for the use anticipated for the site, and will restrict uses
that might not be safe or might impair the protective measures. EPA
will never compromise its standards of protection in order to
support site reuse.
For more information about appropriate future uses for your site,
contact the site’s remedial project manager.
Does EPA support uses other than model
aeronautics?
Yes. EPA supports the appropriate reuse of Superfund
sites. Appropriate site uses can be recreational facilities,
EPA/AMA Q-and-A
such as golf courses, parks, ball fields, or aeromodeling sites;
they can be industrial or commercial uses, such as factories and
shopping malls; they can also be ecological resources, such as
wildlife preserves and wetlands.
How a site will be used is a local decision. However a site is
used, the community benefits because the property is again adding
economic, social, or ecological value.
What makes a site appropriate for flying model
airplanes?
Appropriate aeromodeling sites vary in size, starting
with an area that is 120 yards per side without trees,
boulders, fences, or steep ravines and going up to
sites that are 120 acres or larger. EPA must evaluate the site
and determine that conditions are safe for aeromodeling
activities.
Q: Why would communities want to work with the Academy?
A: To support members of the community who are interested in
flying model airplanes. In addition, the Academy will help
maintain sites by:
• Mowing and maintaining the landscape surfaces on the
portions of Superfund sites that the Academy is using.
• Maintaining fences on the portions of Superfund sites that the
Academy is using.
The Academy asserts that model aviation is educational and
career-building and serves as an alternative to other less beneficial
activities practiced by today’s youth. There are no physical barriers
to aeromodeling; it is open to people of all ages, from juniors to
senior citizens.
Appreciation for flying model airplanes has been shared by
astronauts such as Hoot Gibson, Frank Borman, and Buzz Aldren.
In addition, the Academy says that model aviation is an
educational sport and hobby which encourages early interest in
research and development of future products.
Paul MacCready, developer of the Gossamer Albatros; Chuck
Yeager, the first to break the sound barrier; Burt Rutan, designer of
the around-the-world Voyager; and many, many others have cited
model aviation as being a great value to the community and the
nation.
Does the Academy of Model Aeronautics have any
responsibility for cleanup, operations and
maintenance, or implementation or enforcement of
institutional controls?
No. While the Academy of Model Aeronautics may
take over maintenance of some parts of the remedy in
place at a site, the Academy is not legally responsible
for any prior contamination on the site or for activities related to
its remediation or maintenance.
Whom do I contact for more information?
For more information about the Academy of Model
Aeronautics, contact Joe Beshar, Flying Sites
Coordinator for the Academy of Model Aeronautics,
at (201) 261-1281. MA
AMA offers assistance with flying-site issues. I am the
AMA flying-site assistance coordinator for the western
region, and I have compiled the following list of documents
that are posted on the AMA Web site at
www.modelaircraft.org/acrobat.asp. They can help with
many flying-site-related issues.
Much of the information is relevant to the questions that
individual site owners or local public officials ask most
frequently. If you review the documents before initiating
your quest to save a field or procure a new one, you’ll be
able to answer many of these questions on the spot—and
look well informed at the same time!
• Document 105: “2005 Official AMA National Model
Aircraft Safety Code.” Most parks and recreations
people want an understanding of AMA’s safety
consciousness.
• Document 305: “Application for Insuring Flying Site
Owners or Events Sponsors.” When you describe this
coverage to the site owner, you get close to a “yes”
response.
• Document 500-A: “2005 Insurance Summary.” You
need to be able to describe this to the site owner or city
official.
• Document 535-D: “‘Safety Comes First.’” This column
reprinted from MA contains some good ideas relative to
safety and some dated material as well.
• Document 535-A: “Guidelines for Bylaws for Chartered
Clubs.” Bylaws are not only an AMA requirement, but
they are required for review by some municipalities
when considering whether or not to grant an
organization use of public park property.
• Document 704: “Tips for Newcomers.” This is good
information to have when explaining model aviation to
the uninitiated. It is basic but understandable.
• Document 705: “About Flying Models.” This is another
good background piece for the club spokesperson. It
gives a flavor for the international scope of our sport
and includes some interesting world records.
• Document 706: “Recommended RC Flying Site
Specifications.” Use this one with care. The drawings
and specifications are suggestions—not requirements.
As stated in the document, the site needs to
accommodate the size and type of aircraft you plan to
allow. I’ve nearly lost some battles when local officials
took the recommendations too literally.
For more information about Superfund sites, contact Joe
Beshar at (201) 261-1281. A list of flying fields that are
situated on EPA sites will be included in the “Flying Site
Assistance” column in the July 2005 MA. MA
—Wes De Cou
L-R: AMA’s Joe Beshar, EPA Program Coordinator for
Superfund Development Melissa Friedland, and Rockland
County Radio Control Club co-founder Harvey Landis at the
club’s flying site in Clarkstown, New York. Photo courtesy the
author.
Superfund sites for initial evaluation and
will work with AMA and interested local
chartered clubs to determine their
suitability for model-flying activities. Joe
will remain actively involved in visiting
regional EPA offices as necessary to bring
them up to speed and spread the good news
about positive developments taking place
between AMA and the EPA.
Joe credits many people with helping
make this agreement possible, including
Helen Brownwell of the Pacific Northwest
EPA office, Kirstin Sprinkle and John
Harris of E-Squared, Inc. (a consultant to
EPA), Elizabeth Southland—Director of
Assessments and Remediation Division of
the Superfund Program—and volunteer
AMA assistant Bruce Guimara.
AMA President Dave Brown said:
“The more we can work with
government agencies in positive ways, the
more credibility and legitimacy AMA
gains when engaging other agencies for
similar agreements. Gaining and
maintaining flying sites is a high priority
for AMA members. The opportunity with
EPA, opened by the effort of Joe Beshar, is
a shining example of what we can do to be
proactive for the hobby.”
To get an idea of the scope of Superfund
activity, visit the National Priorities List
(NPL) Web site at
www.epa.gov/superfund/
sites/npl/npl.htm. The NPL is intended
primarily to guide the EPA in determining
which sites warrant further investigation.
From there you can locate NPL sites, check
their cleanup progress, and get information
about new and proposed sites. MA
Tom Gunnarson
7205 Peekskill Dr.
Frederick MD 21702