Federal Initiative to Manage Impacts of Hanscom Field


Save Our Heritage, along with a number of Federal, State, and Local officials, have requested the Obama administration to restart a federal inter-agency workgroup tasked with managing the impacts of Hanscom Field on historic and natural sites, and to give that workgroup a specific work assignment.

In 2003, the National Trust For Historic Preservation identified the threat of impacts and expansion of Hanscom Field to be the primary threat to the surrounding historic sites, when they placed Minute Man National Historical Park on the list of "11 Most Endangered Historic Places in America".  The problem, and the means to address it, have been the subject of 20 years of work by local citizens groups, the surrounding towns via town meetings and town officials, and ongoing work by state legislators and federal congressional representatives.  "The current proposal is a culmination of many years of work on this difficult problem, and attempts to balance the needs of the communities, the National Park Service, the Federal Aviation Administration, and the airport owner Massport." according to Neil Rasmussen, president of Save Our Heritiage.

The proposal seeks to re-establish the inter-agency workgroup which President Clinton created to address this issue in 2001, and to give the workgroup a clear statement of work.  "The previous effort was well conceived, but did not produce useful output because the mission was not clearly defined, and it was de-emphasized by the Bush administration." says Rasmussen.

The proposal to the administration was hand delivered to President Obama in the form of a letter signed by a number of well known historians and naturalists.

A policy brief outlines the proposal, its features and benefits, and why it is the best way to deal with the problem.

Support for the proposal has been provided by state and federal officials in a number of letters to the administration. Written support has been provided by Senator Kerry, Congressional representatives Tsongas, Markey, Tierney, and Democratic Leader Pelosi, state senators Fargo and Donnelly, and state representatives Kaufman, Atkins, Stanley, and Conroy.

Rasmussen looks forward to a cooperative effort regarding the proposal: "We hope that all of the interested parties will see this proposal as a reasonable approach to solving the problems we face in balancing the needs to protect historic and natural sites with the legitimate needs related to the aviation system"