Airport Noise Compatibility Study Group
Louisville and Jefferson County, Kentucky
Adopted December 17, 1998

The 150 Study Group incorporates representation from all components of the airport community: airlines, other aircraft operators, businesses, travelers, residents, management, and government. Its membership is open to all interested parties.

Meetings shall be held at the call of the chair, which shall rotate among those members willing to serve in that capacity. The order of rotation shall be determined at random from an open sign-up list. The chair shall work with the RAA staff and consulting team to prepare the agenda; preside over the meeting; and review and endorse meeting notes for approval at the next meeting. The chair shall also oversee the publication and forwarding of any formal decision or recommendation adopted at the meeting.

The group's work program shall be conducted by focused committees, whose chairs or designated representatives shall report findings and recommendations in their subject areas for discussion and endorsement by the group. Committee chairs shall be selected by, and serve at the pleasure of, their members. The following committees are constituted for the purposes indicated:

Rules.
Prepares and submits the 150 Study Group charter for its approval, and develops such changes and refinements as the Group may direct over time. Hears any objections or comments on the Group's rules and operating practices, and makes appropriate recommendations for the Group's approval.

Coordinating Council Nominating.
Receives and considers nominees from each organization or caucus represented on the Coordinating Council, and submits candidates for endorsement by the 150 Study Group. Processes replacement candidates as needed.

Consultant Screening/Oversight.
Evaluates proposals for technical and administrative support for the 150 study process, and briefs recommendations to the Group. Monitors implementation of resulting contract(s), and recommends actions to address any reported performance problems.

Relocation Liaison.
Studies relocation criteria, policies and resources for affected areas. Reports to the Innovative Housing and Relocation Working Group on 150 study matters affecting relocation, and conveys pertinent Working Group business to the 150 Study Group for coordinated treatment.

Sensitive Facilities Mitigation.
Studies noise impact and potential mitigating steps for facilities not suitable for relocation, or disproportionately affected by noise -churches, schools, meeting halls, etc. Recommends alternative strategies for relief.

Metrics.
Reviews scientific means to measure airport noise exposure, and weighs effectiveness of alternatives. Examines resulting criteria to direct and gauge relief, and makes recommendations to the 150 Study Group.

Monitoring.
Collects data resulting from noise monitoring. Evaluates the fidelity of noise models against actual measurements of exposure. Recommends, as needed, adjustments to modeling inputs, strategies for gathering actual data, and refinement of resulting exposure profiles.

Navigation.
Studies the impact of prescribed flight patterns on noise exposure. Develops recommendations for policies determining arrival and departure rules based on direction, time of day, weather conditions, and other pertinent criteria.

New Technologies.
Reviews current and emerging capabilities to mitigate airport noise via innovative navigation aids, equipment upgrades, dampening devices, physical barriers, and the like. Weighs economic feasibility and recommends practical steps.

Environmental Issues.
Examines related impact of elements other than noise attributable to airport operations. Develops recommendations to mitigate air pollution, chemical deposits, wildlife degradation, and similar effects.

Public Information.
Evaluates current and prospective means to inform the public, process complaints, compile statistics, and provide feedback on noise exposure. And recommends new measures and programs to increase public awareness and participation.

Strategic Planning.
Studies the long-range impact of airport operations in alternative foreseeable futures. Develops recommendations to address cumulative effects under various economic and demographic assumptions.

Committees may be added, consolidated, or discontinued with the approval of the Group.

Administrative support for the Group's work program shall be provided by the staff of the Regional Airport Authority, or by the noise consultant team contracted to support the study, and coordinated by the chair for the conduct and content of each meeting. Support includes publication and distribution of meeting notices and agendas, taking meeting notes, reproduction of discussion materials, documentation of decisions and recommendations, public affairs liaison, and such related tasks as the chair may identify. Meeting notes shall capture comments, questions, and decisions made by the group. Notes shall also be taken of the meetings of constituent committees, for distribution, after committee review and approval, to the general membership.

Technical support shall be provided by the noise consultant team to each committee in its respective functional area. The team shall report data, evaluations and findings to the appropriate committee(s) as they emerge on individual issues, respond to inquiries, and assist as needed in making committee presentations to the 150 Study Group. The team shall document recommendations adopted by the Group, and assist in moving them forward for consideration in compiling the revised Noise Compatibility Program.

The 150 Study Group shall take its decisions by consensus of attending members. Issues on which consensus is not achieved in the Group shall be referred back to committee for further study. In cases where the chair determines that efforts to attain consensus are exhausted, findings shall be compiled and forwarded with full representation of dissenting views.

Business of the Group shall otherwise be conducted informally, with procedural questions resolved by reference to the Modern Rules of Order. Recurrent or systemic issues shall be referred to the Rules Committee for study and recommendations.

In order to permit effective monitoring of implementation of the Noise Compatibility Program resulting from this study, the 150 Study Group anticipates its subsequent reconstitution as a Community Noise Forum, to extend the broad representation and close communication the study process represents.

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STUDY COMMUNICATIONS
The flow of dialogue and study information is a critical factor in reinforcing the Study Group structure and the quality of its work. When study principals or consultants receive inquiries or proposals from individual Group members or other sources, it’s important to steer action into the appropriate committee, so that information is fully shared, common concerns identified early, and facts and solutions spread to all interested parties.

To meet these objectives, the Study Group has adopted the following procedure:

On receiving an inquiry from a Study Group member, the recipient shall

invite the inquirer to consult the appropriate committee, furnishing the chair’s name and number;

comment on any previous treatment of the same question of which he/she may be aware; and,

if the inquirer insists on a direct response,

make an informal response, and/or refer the inquirer to an authoritative source, and

inform the appropriate committee chair of the inquiry and response.

The committee chair receiving a referred inquiry shall

record the inquiry, and any response given, for future reference; and either

respond based on information already available, or

refer the matter to the Study Group chair.

The Study Group chair shall either

refer the matter to another committee with pertinent information based on a common interest;

respond based on information already available to the Group;

ask consultants to develop a response of common interest to the Group; or

invite the originating committee chair to seek a consultant response of specific interest to the committee.

In either of the last two cases, the chair shall coordinate with the RAA project manager to make sure the necessary work is within the scope of the project, or is otherwise supportable.

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