What Legislators & People are Saying About the Proposed Hanscom Expansion
See what our legislators, town boards, environmental leaders, and community leaders & members are saying.
Statements from: Legislators Environmental Leaders Towns & Cities
Public letters & statements to: Gov Healey Developer Leerink Massport Board LTEs and Op-Eds
What Our Legislators are Saying
U.S. Senator Ed Markey, 10/2/23
“The climate crisis is indisputable. We just experienced the hottest summer on record with intense storms, severe wildfires, and devastating flooding. Private jets spew tons of carbon into the atmosphere, contributing to this crisis. Private jet travel is a luxury our climate cannot afford.”
Full statement here.
State Senator Mike Barrett, 10/2/23
“If 27 — or 18 — or just a dozen — of these hangars get built, the agency will never come back from the reputational damage. Going ahead would be an unforced error, one of the biggest ones in modern Massachusetts public policy. None of us should want this.“
Full statement here.
State Senator Cindy F. Friedman, Sep 2023
“The Hanscom Field expansion for private jets is deeply problematic, and I can’t see the project bringing any benefit to the communities surrounding Hanscom or to the Commonwealth as a whole. It certainly does not benefit our environment or help us reach our climate goals…this project will hurt the public.”
-Sept 2023 Lexington Times, “The Little Airport That Could” by E. Ashley Rooney
State Representative Carmine Gentile, 9/4/23
“It’s very important that people voice their opposition to the proposed 27 new private jet hangars AND continuation of the current level of private jet use in the U.S. locally, to the Governor and State legislators, and to our terrific Congressional delegation…”
Environmental Leaders
Chuck Collins
Program Director, Institute of Policy Studies
“…authors of the [Hanscom High Flyers] report, say such travel is a reason [Massport] should abandon a plan…to expand Hanscom’s private jet capacity. 'Private jet travel is ‘an indefensible extravagance on an overheating planet,’ said Chuck Collins, an author of the report. ‘We shouldn’t be expanding private jet infrastructure at Hanscom or anywhere.’”
Caitlin Peale Sloan
Vice President, Conservation Law Foundation
The [Hanscom High Flyers report] underscored why “continuing to coddle the ultrawealthy by expanding private jet services is unjustifiable in the face of the climate crisis.” She was particularly disturbed by how many flights seemed unnecessary, especially in an era of video conferencing. ‘This report confirms with data what we have long understood: Private jet travel is wasteful and places huge cost and environmental burdens on the rest of us.’”
Bill McKibben
Co-Founder, 350.org
“[On] what policies Massachusetts should adopt, McKibben said that any new fossil fuel infrastructure should be stopped…He referred to the hangar expansion proposal for private luxury jets at Hanscom Field this way: ‘It’s the single most ludicrous idea I’ve ever heard. They ought to rename it Carbon Dioxide Field. Find a way,” he added, ‘to knock that down fast.’”
Elizabeth Turnbull Henry
President, Environmental League of Massachusetts
“’Expanding highways increases cars; expanding private jet capacity increases private jets,’ said Elizabeth Turnbull Henry, president of the Environmental League of Massachusetts, who compared the [proposed Hanscom] hangars to ‘building a climate bomb.’”
Town & City Governments
Hanscom Area Towns (HATS) Letter
Approved by the Bedford, Concord, Lexington, and Lincoln Select Boards. Hanscom Field is located in these four towns.
“Our towns have been diligently working hand-in-hand with the State government to achieve our greenhouse gas emission reduction targets by 2030, and we have made significant progress. However, the proposed North Airfield expansion would undermine these efforts, exacerbating greenhouse gas emissions and directly contradicting the climate goals pursued by our towns, the Commonwealth, and the nation.”
Read the full HATS Letter here.
Town & City Resolutions Against the Expansion
Wayland Resolution
“The Select Board of the Town of Wayland opposes the expansion of private jet facilities and use at Hanscom Field because of the unavoidable adverse climate and environmental impacts and because such expansion is contrary to equity and environmental justice goals for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.”
Full resolution here.
Bedford Energy and Sustainability Committee
“Bedford has made great strides by electrifying town buildings, increasing electric charging stations for vehicles, and promoting clean energy sources through its community choice aggregation program. Supporting the airport expansion would be in direct opposition to the town goals of reducing emissions to NetZero by 2050.”
More to come.
Want your town or city to
sign a Resolution?
We have just the toolkit for you!
Contact: muni@stopprivatejetexpansion.org
Letters to the Editor (LTE) and Opinion-Editorials (Op-Ed)
Writing a letter to the editor (LTE) or an Opinion-Editorial (Op-Ed) is a powerful way to increase awareness within our communities of the proposed expansion plans and their implications. Our members have penned a number of LTEs and Op-Eds throughout this campaign to local news outlets. See some highlights below:
The Bedford Citizen 2/23/24 LTE
by Christopher O’Keefe
Environmental Impact of Jets at Hanscom “When the developers assert that the project will achieve Net Zero emissions by 2031, they base this misleading claim only on reduction in building emissions – with NO inclusion of aviation greenhouse gas emissions whatsoever. This is greenwashing, plain and simple.”
The Bedford Citizen 2/28/24 Op-Ed submitted
by Kay Aubrey for Mothers Out Front
Mothers Out Front Opposed to the Proposed Private Jet Expansion Project “By fighting the private jet hangar expansion at Hanscom Field, we’re sending a message to all airports: No private jet expansion. Not at Hanscom. Not anywhere. It’s a luxury our climate cannot afford.”
The Bedford Citizen 12/8/23 LTE
by Kay Aubrey
Private Jet Flights Risk the Environment “Bedford, like many other towns in Massachusetts, has diligently worked to reduce carbon emissions and promote environmental sustainability. The proposed expansion at Hanscom Airfield threatens to undermine these collective efforts, reintroducing a substantial amount of carbon fuels into the atmosphere. This is not only counterproductive but could reverse the progress we have made in combating climate change.”
Greenfield Recorder 11/12/23 LTE
by Sue Donaldson
Climate Report Critical “Private jets are the worst carbon emitters for per-person travel, and they privilege the ultra-wealthy over the rest of us. Healey could lean on Hoffer’s report in telling Massport: no way.”
From Community Leaders & Members
Letters to Governor Healey & Climate Chief Hoffer
Below are samples of letters (posted with the permission of the authors) that have been sent to Gov Healey and Climate Chief Hoffer from people across the state.
I am a concerned citizen and grandparent and healthcare professional who cares about the climate and the future of all children. If the plan goes forward, private jet emissions from Hanscom alone could negate up to 70% of the climate benefits from solar PV ever installed in Mass…Please use your power to halt plans to expand private jet capacity.
JoAnn Mulready-Shick, Lexington, MA
Full letter here.
I appeal to you now as a longtime resident of Concord, Massachusetts deeply concerned about the future of this area and the planet if we allow unnecessary pollution to despoil our environment. The proposed plans of MassPort to increase private jet capacity is simply wrong. It caters to privileged, wealthy people at the expense of the vast majority of the population.
Melissa Saalfield, Concord, MA
Full letter here.
I am dismayed to hear about the proposed private jet hangar expansion at Hanscom Field…Private jets are the worst form of travel per passenger in terms of carbon emissions. In this moment of crisis all have to do their part, especially as historically wealthy nations and people cause more of the carbon emissions and the less wealthy stand to suffer the most.
Nancy Sarro, North Andover, MA
Full letter here.
As climate disasters pile on threatening the health of our children and of our most vulnerable citizens, we must do everything in our power to slow carbon emissions. Expanding private jet service would do exactly the opposite at exactly the wrong time. That’s why we have come together, on behalf of our patients, to oppose this measure.
Climate Code Blue, Somerville, MA
Full letter here.
Want to share your thoughts with Governor Healey and Climate Chief Hoffer?
Learn how to send your own letter to the Governor here.
This proposed expansion will increase private jet traffic -- by far the most emissions intensive form of transportation. The proposal jeopardizes all the hard work the state of MA has been doing to reduce CO2e emissions, and for what purpose? The expansion only benefits a few wealthy passengers but we all will have to live with the consequences.
C.I., Lexington, MA
Full letter here.
Why should Massport be allowed to expand its infrastructure at Hanscom for the most polluting form of travel for its carbon footprint, while the rest of Massachusetts is working arduously to reduce its carbon emissions to help get the Climate Crisis under control? Please take a clear public stand against expanding private jet travel or infrastructure at Hanscom or anywhere.
Keith Olcott, Maynard, MA
Full letter here.
As a Massachusetts grandparent, I am deeply concerned that the escalating climate crisis will have a huge and devastating impact on future generations around the world, and I am doing whatever I can to help reduce carbon emissions that are causing harmful global climate warming.
Mark Myles, Concord, MA
Full letter here.
Letters & Statements to developer Jeffrey Leerink
Jeffrey Leerink is a principal investor and developer driving the proposed private luxury jet hangar expansion at Massport-owned Hanscom Field (not Hanscom Air Force Base). Jeffrey Leerink: Time to decide your legacy—Public Health or Climate Catastrophe?
Below are samples of letters (posted with the permission of the authors) that have been sent to Leerink from people across the state.
Read full letters from people below, and view our Dec 7 protest page with more statements here.
“Your proposal to dramatically increase private jet capacity will have a devastating impact on our Commonwealth’s efforts to stabilize the Climate. Private jet travel is a privilege for the few at the expense of the many.”
Keith Ohmart, Lexington, MA
Full letter here.
You surely know that private jets are the most polluting form of travel per passenger for their carbon footprint. You know that your proposed plan would be directly responsible for cancelling over 50% of the climate gains from solar PV ever installed in MA. Cancel your dangerous expansion plans for the super-rich!”
Martha Simon, Burlington, MA
Full letter here.
“If you understand the seriousness of climate change in the coming decades for all forms of life on earth - including members of your family - and if your values say you care about the well-being of others, then it simply follows [that] you should not participate in the expansion of the use of private jets.”
Alan Field, Winchester, MA
Full letter here.
“Studies document that when highways are widened to reduce congestion, more congestion results. This same will apply to your expansion plans: build it and they will come. Choose your legacy: Public Health or Climate Catastrophe? Expansion of any size will undercut our state climate gains.”
Daphne Ritzakis, Lexington, MA
Full letter here.
“At a time when it's clear we must transition from fossil fuels to alternative sources of energy as soon as possible, your plans fly in the face of reason -- and their harmful consequences would plague future generations. My neighbors and I are writing to respectfully request that you cease your Hanscom expansion plans.”
Kathy Madison, Lincoln, MA
Full letter here.
“It’s the height of outrage and insanity for you…to be expanding your carbon footprint with plans for super-polluting private jets when towns and cities across Massachusetts are struggling to reduce theirs…Whether you build 27 or 17 new hangars; an expansion of ANY size will further undercut Mass climate gains.”
Medford Resident
Full letter here.
“IT’S ABOUT MORE THAN MONEY…Your investments in public health, life sciences, and biotech have been a great boon for these important sectors. This is why as a mother…and someone who cares greatly about planetary health, I am flummoxed by your desire to fund a private jetway at Hanscom Field.”
Judith Black, Marblehead, MA
Full letter here.
Public Comments to Massport Board
Massport has the power to drop the proposed expansion and prioritize Massachusetts climate goals.
See what community members are saying to the Massport board.
“We are so sad that our leaders turn away from doing the right thing. We are anxious about what our world will look like in the next 10 years…It is unconscionable that you could propose a project that would undermine all the climate goals our state has been working on.”
Patricia O’Hagan, Lincoln, MA
Full statement here.
“[Watertown] is the first city in the country to have new net-zero emissions elementary schools and our new high school which will be the first…net zero high school in the country. Emissions prevented by these new green buildings will be wiped out by the private luxury jet expansion at Hanscom's North Airfield.”
Eileen Ryan, Watertown, MA
Full statement here.
“Use of these jets would render meaningless efforts of Massachusetts citizens to reduce emissions through…green energy generated…our use of electric vehicles, and our efforts to move towards net zero homes and buildings…We want to protect what we have. We want to protect the future of the next generations.”
Anne Sobol, Lincoln, MA
Full statement here.
“I believe that how MassPort responds to the proposal to expand private jet hangar capacity at Hanscom civil air field will be a test case...I think it can find a way…to reject the private jet expansion proposal on the basis that it would lead to a tremendous increase in emissions of global-warming gases.”
Paul Shorb, Lincoln, MA
Full statement here.
“By signing off on this expansion…MassPort would be allowing the super-rich–those who can afford private jets–to continue to live their lives of unmitigated luxury gallivanting off on their vacations to their second & third homes, polluting the planet, while the poor and the vulnerable suffer [for] their opulence.”
Garrett Yates, Priest at St. Anne’s Church
Full statement here.
“The proposed North Field development is estimated to add at a minimum another 375,000 tons of carbon emissions. These large increases in private jet emissions are not sustainable and are not consistent with Massport’s commitment to be a good steward in service of a great Commonwealth.”
Scott Richardson, Concord, MA
Full statement here.
My name is Emily Bennett, I am 20 years old, & I am concerned. Young people's job is to act like young people, to…make mistakes knowing they have the rest of their lives to define themselves. It shouldn’t be my job, or anyone in my generation's job to fix problems created by those who have solely put profit before people.”
Emily Bennett, Lincoln, MA
Full letter here.