Lawyer weighs in with letter to the Navy brass

Residents living in the flight patterns of Naval Air Station Key West have been making a lot of noise about increased sound levels of jets in training on the base.

Now environmental attorney Richard Grosso says there's substance to the complaints.

Grosso, representing the Florida Keys Citizens Coalition and Tavernier resident John Hammerstrom, said the U.S. Navy introduced overly noisy jets without following federal procedures.

Residents have been complaining since the March release of the Navy's Air Installation Compatibility Use Zone, or AICUZ, document, which establishes sound and safety contours around air bases.

Navy officials want Monroe County to adopt the new contours for use in deciding development issues, but the county has not taken action. Now Grosso says there's proof the new AICUZ does not take into consideration the sound levels emitted by the Navy's most commonly used plane, the F-18 Super Hornet.

Grosso, director of the Environmental and Land Use Law Clinic at Nova Southeastern University, sent a letter to B.J. Penn, assistant secretary of the Navy, on Nov 15. In it, he said the Navy's own data shows the F-18s are a lot louder than the Tomcats they replaced. He cites the AICUZ, which shows decibel levels went up from 99 decibels to 117.

“I'm sure you are aware,” Grosso wrote, “that a 10-[decibel] increase doubles the loudness. Eighteen decibels is nearly four times as loud. That is a very significant difference that could affect the quality of the human environment.”

On Oct. 23, the Navy hosted an AICUZ community meeting in Key West. Now the Monroe County Commission is poised for another workshop, this time with the Navy and Key West City Commission. The meeting is set for 2 p.m. Dec. 5 at the Harvey Government Center.

“We're asking the county to either accept the AICUZ or not,” NAS spokesman Jim Brooks said. “We want it in the county's comprehensive land-use plan for the long-term protection against encroachment to the air station.”

According to Brooks, the F-18s have been flying in the Keys since 2003. He notes that the number of complaints has been minimal and fairly steady until the new AICUZ document was brought up.

“Back in 2003, we had 29 complaints and 15 unique callers,” he said. “In 2007, the complaint number is in the dozens. But the number of unique callers is still 15.”

On Sept. 12, Key West attorney Bob Goldman presented some of the same issues Grosso did in his November letter, including a charge that the Navy did not comply with the federal National Environmental Policy Act in bringing the F-18s to the Keys.

NAS Capt. J.R. Brown responded to Goldman in early November, saying the Navy did indeed comply with NEPA requirements by completing an environmental assessment for infrastructure improvements.