What airport pollution problem is most urgent?
While airplane noise has been a public quality of life issue for many years, and water pollution from airport runoff is minimally addressed under national water pollution laws, the effect on local air quality of hundreds and thousands of airplanes idling, taxiing, taking off and landing is virtually uncontrolled. Airport air pollution is similar in scope to that generated by local power plants, incinerators, and refineries, yet is exempt from rules other industrial polluters must follow. 3. How much do airports contribute to pollution overall? Many airports rank among the top 10 industrial air pollution sources in their cities (including airports in Los Angeles, Washington, and Chicago). Nationwide, planes at airports emit about 1 percent of smog-forming gases. But while pollution from other sources is stabilizing or decreasing, the pollution from planes at airports continues to grow due to the tremendous growth in air travel and the lack of controls on airport pollution. 4. How signif
