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Tree clearing begins after protest ends
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Related Topics: BALTIMORE
BALTIMORE (Map, News) - Crews began clearing an area including about 330 trees near Carroll County Regional Airport on Monday after residents dropped a move to block the cutting.
“We decided against it after weighing the options. And I guess the clients decided that, with limited funds and the possibility of other issues coming down the line, to reserve funds for another fight,” said Paul De Santis, an environmental lawyer hired by Westminster residents Rebekah Orenstein and Mary Kowalski.
They hired De Santis and G. Macy Nelson, lawyers at Nelson’s Towson firm, because they believe the county is cutting down the trees to make way for a runway expansion. County commissioners approved expanding the runway from 5,100 feet to 6,400 in a 2-1 vote last summer to expand the county’s industrial and commercial tax base.
An expanded runway would bring increased noise and traffic, which would lower neighbors’ quality of life, residents say.
The county, however, said the trees were being cleared for a lighting system that lets pilots better see the runway as they land — a safety measure unrelated to the expansion.
“This airport is an excellent aviation facility that all parties should be very proud to have in their community,” airport manager Joe McKelvey said.
The county will plant about 1,400 trees at the nearby Hashawha Environmental Center to mitigate the clearing, according to county plans.
Meanwhile, the county hired Delta Airport Consultants Inc. to carry out an environmental study for the runway expansion, which is under way and could take about 18 months to complete, McKelvey said.
De Santis said he could bring legal action as the process progresses.
“The initial call was look, there’s going to be an environmental assessment being done for the expansion of one of the runways; it makes sense to wait for that assessment,” De Santis said. “It’d be a shame to chop down those trees and have the expansion not be necessary.”
msilvestri@baltimoreexaminer.com
Comments from Examiner Readers
11:08 AM MST on Fri., May. 9, 2008 re: "Residents hope bog turtles block expansion at airport"
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2:20 PM MST on Sun., Mar. 9, 2008
re: "Residents hire lawyers to save trees"
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7:45 AM MST on Fri., Nov. 9, 2007
re: "Airport manager removed amid expansion controversy"
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12:01 PM MST on Fri., Aug. 31, 2007
re: "Carroll looks to feds to ease airport woes"
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8:45 PM MST on Fri., Aug. 24, 2007
re: "State says black splotches on roofs are not jet fuel"
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Examiner Reader said:
The State of Maryland Heritage Group will do a Bog Turtle study as well. That group found the turtle in a wet land near the bi-pass. FEAR the TURTLE
6 agree | 3 disagree
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Barney said:
Hug a tree now, plant one later.
6 agree | 4 disagree
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Linda said:
This is a no brainer, of course the county would hire Delta, the same people that recommended the expansion, no objective decisions will be made there.
120 agree | 112 disagree
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Or... said:
Or maybe Tregoning can send his deputies out door-to-door to explain it all.
149 agree | 151 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
Maybe the State Police can spend some of their extra $500,000 dollars to help solve this..
152 agree | 157 disagree
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