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###### Department of Transportation

###### Federal Aviation Administration 

# AGENCY:

Federal Aviation Administration, DOT.

# ACTION:

Notice. 

# SUMMARY:

                        The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announces its determination that the noise exposure maps (NEM's) submitted by the airport director for the Boise Air Terminal/Gowen Field under the provisions of 49 U.S.C. 47501*et seq*. (Aviation Safety and Noise Abatement Act) and 14 CFR part 150 are in compliance with applicable requirements. The FAA also announces that it is reviewing a proposed noise compatibility program that was submitted for the Boise Air Terminal/Gowen Field under part 150 in conjunction with the NEM's and this program will be approved or disapproved on or before February 13, 2006.                    

# DATES:

The effective date of the FAA's determination on the NEM's and the start of its review of the associated noise compatibility program is August 12, 2005. The public comment period ends October 12, 2005.

# FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Cayla Morgan, Federal Aviation Administration, Seattle Airports District Office, 1601 Lind Ave., SW., Suite 250, Renton, WA 98055-4056, telephone (425) 227-2653. Comments on the proposed noise compatibility program should also be submitted to the above office.

# SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

This notice announces that the FAA finds that the NEM's submitted for the Boise Air Terminal/Gowen Field are in compliance with applicable requirements of part 150, effective August 12, 2005. Further, the FAA is reviewing a proposed noise compatibility program for that airport which will be approved or disapproved on or before February 13, 2006. This notice also announces the availability of this program for public review and comment.

Under 49 U.S.C., section 47503 (the Aviation Safety and Noise Abatement Act, hereinafter referred to as “the Act”), an airport operator may submit to the FAA NEM's which meet applicable regulations and which depict non-compatible land uses as of the date of submission of such maps, a description of projected aircraft operations, and the ways in which such operations will affect such maps. The Act requires such maps to be developed in consultation with interested and affected parties in the local community, government agencies, and persons using the airport.

                    An airport operator who has submitted NEM's that are found by the FAA to be in compliance with the requirements of Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR) part 150, promulgated pursuant to the Act, may submit a noise compatibility program for FAA approval which sets forth the measures the operator has taken, or                           ( print page 49361)                        proposes to take, to reduce existing non-compatible uses and prevent the introduction of additional non-compatible uses.                

The director of the Boise Air Terminal/Gowen Field submitted to the FAA on September 9, 2004, NEM's, descriptions and other documentation that were produced during the Boise Air Terminal/Gowen Field FAR Part 150 Study dated July 2004. It was requested that the FAA review this material as the NEM's, as described in section 47503 of the Act, and that the noise mitigation measures, to be implemented jointly by the airport and surrounding communities, be approved as a noise compatibility program under section 47504 of the Act.

                    The FAA has completed its review of the NEM's and related descriptions submitted by the director of the Boise Air Terminal/Gowen Field. The specific documentation determined to constitute the NEM's includes the following from the                     *Boise Air Terminal/Gowen Field FAR Part 150 Study of July 2004:*
    - Figure 5-1, Existing Noise Exposure Map, 2004
    - Figure 5-2, Future Noise Exposure Map, 2009
    - Tables(s) 2.17 and 2.18, Summary of Annual Activity for 2003 and 2008
    - Table 5.1 at page 5.2, Existing and Future Noise Exposure Map with Existing and Future Land Use, presents estimates of the number of persons residing within the day/night noise level 60 through 75 noise contours
    - Figures 3-1 and 3-2 present Flight Tracks
    - Pages 9-1 through 9-3 present the Record of Consultation during the study
    - Appendix F presents Revised Consultation

The FAA has determined that these maps for the Boise Air Terminal/Gowen Field are in compliance with applicable requirements. This determination is effective on August 12, 2005. The FAA's determination on an airport operator's NEM's is limited to a finding that the maps were developed in accordance with the procedures contained in Appendix A of FAR part 150. Such determination does not constitute approval of the applicant's data, information or plans, or constitute a commitment to approve a noise compatibility program or funds the implementation of that program.

If questions arise concerning the precise relationship of specific properties to noise exposure contours depicted on a NEM's submitted under section 47503 of the Act, it should be noted that the FAA is not involved in any way in determining the relative locations of specific properties with regard to the depicted noise contours, or interpreting the NEM's to resolve questions concerning, for example, which properties should be covered by the provisions of section 47506 of the Act. These functions are inseparable from the ultimate land-use-control and planning responsibilities of local government. These local responsibilities are not changed in any way under part 150 or through the FAA's review of NEM's. Therefore, the responsibility for the detailed overlaying of noise exposure contours onto the map depicting properties on the surface rests exclusively with the airport operator who submitted those maps, or with those public agencies and planning agencies with which consultation is required under section 47503 of the Act. The FAA has relied on the certification by the airport operator, under section 150.21 of FAR part 150, that the statutorily required consultation has been accomplished. The FAA has formally received the noise compatibility program for Boise Air Terminal/Gowen Field, also effective on August 12, 2005. Preliminary review of the submitted material indicates that it conforms to the requirements for the submittal of noise compatibility programs, but that further review will be necessary prior to approval or disapproval of the program. The formal review period, limited by law to a maximum of 180 days, will be completed on or before February 13, 2006.

The FAA's detailed evaluation will be conducted under the provisions of 14 CFR part 150, section 150.33. The primary considerations in the evaluation process are whether the proposed measures may reduce the level of aviation safety, create an undue burden on interstate or foreign commerce, or be reasonably consistent with obtaining the goal of reducing existing non-compatible land uses and preventing the introduction of additional non-compatible land uses.

Interested persons are invited to comment on the proposed program with specific reference to these factors. The FAA will consider all comments, other than those properly addressed to local land use authorities, to the extent practicable. Copies of the noise exposure maps, the FAA's evaluation of the maps, and the proposed noise compatibility program are available for examination at the following locations: 

Federal Aviation Administration, Airports Division, 1601 Lind Avenue, SW., Suite 315, Renton, Washington.

Seattle Airports District Office, 1601 Lind Ave., SW., Suite 250, Seattle, Washington.

Boise Air Terminal/Gowen Field, 3201 Airport Way, Boise, Idaho. 

                    Questions may be directed to the individual named above under the heading,                     **FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT**                    .                

Issued in Renton, Washington, August 12, 2005.

Lowell H. Johnson,

Manager, Airports Division, Northwest Mountain Region.

[FR Doc. 05-16737  Filed 8-22-05; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910-13-M