FAA Advisory Circular (AC) 150/5200-33, Hazardous Wildlife Attractants on or Near Airports provides guidance on locating land uses that may potentially attract hazardous wildlife onto or in the vicinity of public-use airports. The AC provides examples of land uses that may be compatible with airport operations and those that have been deemed incompatible. Siting criteria for the noncompatible uses is defined and notification requirements are provided.
FAA recommends that wildlife-attracting uses be located beyond the following distances from an airport's aircraft movement areas, loading ramps, or aircraft parking areas:
Examples of such incompatible land uses include putrescible-waste disposal operations, wastewater treatment facilities, artificial marshes, wastewater discharge and sludge disposal, wetland mitigation that provides habitat for hazardous wildlife (particularly waterfowl).
Some land uses may be compatible with safe airport operations provided they are designed appropriately. Examples of these possible uses include, enclosed waste facilities, recycling centers accepting non-food items, composting operations, construction and demolition debris landfills, water detention or retention facilities, landscaping, golf courses, and agricultural crops. To insure that any of these uses are safe with airport operations, we highly recommend that FAA's Airports District Office (ADO) be notified early of the proposal. The ADO will then work closely with the United States Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Services Division (USDA-WS), with whom the FAA has a Memorandum of Understanding for assessing and reducing wildlife hazards. The recommended notification procedures for these proposals are outlined below as well as some general design guidelines for detention facilities.
FAA recommends that all proposals listed above go through the 7460 process. This involves filing a completed Form 7460, Notice of Proposed Construction or Alteration, with attached drawings of the proposal with the Airports District Office. At the same time, a copy of the form and the preliminary design and drawings should also be forwarded to the appropriate USDA state contact.
FAA recommends that the ADO be notified of all proposals by other municipalities or developers if they are within the criteria listed above. FAA will then work with USDA-WS to either find an acceptable location or achieve a compatible design at the proposed location.
As outlined in Section 2-4 of AC 150/5200-33, exceptions to locating mitigation activities outside the separation criteria may be considered if the affected wetlands provide unique ecological functions, such as critical habitat for a threatened or endangered species or ground water recharge. With the recent listings of salmon, there may be additional requirements to mitigate for such impacts. Again, the best way to proceed is to work closely with the FAA and USDA-WS.
Listed below are general recommendations for detention facilities. For guidance on other proposals, please contact the ADO:
FAA published Advisory Circular 150/5200-36A on January 31, 2012. It provides information on the qualifications of a wildlife biologist conducting wildlife hazard assessments and training curriculums for airort personnel involved in controlling wildlife hazards on airports.
Page Last Modified: 09/05/12 11:16 EDT
This page can be viewed online at: http://www.faa.gov/airports/northwest_mountain/airport_safety/wildlife_hazards/