Malverne to join group against air traffic noise

As a plane soars over Malverne on an early August afternoon, the noise rumbles through the small village.

Several times a day, planes such as these pass over Malverne and neighboring communities, which have seen a dramatic increase in air traffic since runway changes were implemented at Kennedy International Airport last summer. Malvernites began speaking out about the problem several months ago, using platforms such as Facebook to make their voices heard.

Now, though, it seems village officials are also planning on taking a stand against the turbulence of volume created by the passing planes. On July 25, Mayor Patricia McDonald attended a meeting for the Town-Village Aircraft Safety and Noise Abatement Committee — which has members from 13 communities, including Garden City, Island Park, Lawrence, Long Beach and Valley Stream — where the focus of discussion was primarily the use of Runway 22L whose intended purpose is to serve as a last resort runway for late-night flights.

Representatives from the JFK Air Traffic Control Tower, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the Aviation Development Council and the Federal Aviation Administration attended the meeting to address questions posed by residents, which included those about the dangers and noisiness of planes flying at low altitudes.

McDonald attended the meeting to learn more about the group and is considering joining it.

“We are definitely planning on being a part of the group,” said Village Board Trustee Michael Bailey, who added that stopping the noise from the planes “is a top priority. This group could be a big step in lowering this inconvenience.”