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The Federal Aviation Administration is stepping into the long-standing battle at Pease International Tradeport over the proposed Million Air project.

Pease officials have been put on notice by the FAA over the Million Air plan to build a new fixed base operator facility (FBO). The agency is reviewing the plan and the impacts it will have on the airport’s layout and requiring Pease to have a new environmental impact study done to FAA standards.

Meghann Wayss, a Newington resident who is part of the local opposition to Million Air’s project, hopes this FAA review will finally slow the approval for the project, which Wayss and others say poses serious risks to Seacoast drinking water.

“I’m really hopeful all of this will come to a close,” Wayss said.

Peter Bragdon, spokesman for the Texas-based Million Air, declined to comment on the FAA’s review, saying it is a matter for the Pease Development Board.

Million Air wants to build a new fixed-based operator (FBO) facility at Pease to service private aircraft. The proposal includes building a 90,000 fuel storage system. The project’s construction is also close to wetlands that feed into local drinking water sources. Building the facility would involve disturbing those wetlands. 

According to a letter from the FAA to Pease officials, Million Air’s FBO represents a change to the Pease airport layout plan, or ALP, on file with the FAA. Any change to the ALP requires FAA approval under federal rules. That means Million Air’s project is now in the hands of federal officials.

According to FAA Project Manager Sean Tiney, the final approval all comes down to the environmental impact.

“The FAA’s ALP approval authority for the proposed project, and any other federal approvals associated with the project … is a federal action subject to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA),” Tiney wrote. “Therefore, (Pease) will be required to perform an appropriate environmental review consistent with NEPA.”

Million Air’s plans seemed inevitable for months despite vocal opposition from many residents and local leaders. However, the company backed off a bit when the PDA was set to give final approval this summer. 

In June, environmental impacts on the wetlands forced the company and the board to put off the approval until at least December. According to a memo from Michael Mates, the PDA’s director of engineering, Million Air needs more time to complete a review of the Gosling Station Wells, which includes water that flows into the Haven Well. 

The Gosling Wells were taken offline in the 1950s when Pease was built as an Air Force base. The military’s use of products containing PFAS resulted in contamination that has haunted residents on the Seacoast. PFAS — also known as “forever chemicals” –have a decades-long half-life and are linked to serious illness and certain cancers. 

Now, with the FAA oversight, Wayss can see a future at Pease without Million Air. 

“I don’t feel like they would be someone who has true interest and concern for the health and well-being of the community here,” Wayss said. “We want companies who care and are doing their best to be upfront and involved in the community.”

Nothing has been decided yet, and Wayss wants to bring more residents into the coalition opposed to Million Air’s project. The concern has always been for the drinking water, she said.

“This site should be off-limits. Drinking water is our greatest resource,” Wayss said.

Bragdon and other Million Air officials have consistently deflected the criticism and blamed the opposition on potential rival Port City Air. It operates an existing FBO at Pease and has been upfront in its opposition to Million Air on environmental grounds.

Port City is currently fighting in court over state approvals for Million Air. Port City was part of the appeal to the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Protection’s Water Council over state approval for Million Air’s wetlands permit. However, DES threw out Port City’s appeal on the argument the company does not qualify as an abutter under the law. 

Port City is now taking the case to the New Hampshire Supreme Court, saying DES’s order is unconstitutional.

As the New Hampshire legislative session quickly comes to a close, the public hearings for the controversial Northern Pass project are just beginning to heat up. Thursday marked the first of three scheduled public statement hearings in Concord for people who are not intervenors in the project but have an interest in what happens.

The 192-mile proposed transmission line from Pittsburg to Deerfield would bring roughly 1,090 megawatts of hydropower from Quebec to the New England power grid. Proponents say the $1.6 billion project could reduce the state’s high electricity costs and encourage businesses to move to New Hampshire. Opponents disagree and say the project would ruin the Granite State’s tourism industry due to the the high-voltage towers and construction that would impact local businesses.

“The proposed army of giant towers marching across the spines of these towns will cripple tourism, property values, community spaces, and family recreation, not to mention, their children’s health,” said Kathleen Sims of New Boston.

A total of 117 people are scheduled to make statements about the project during the upcoming hearings and about 70 percent have indicated that they oppose the project. June 15 was the first one, but there are others scheduled for June 22 and July 20. A possible fourth hearing could be included if more time is needed.

The hearings are part of the Site Evaluation Committee’s (SEC) ongoing adjudicative hearings that will continue throughout the summer months. The committee must decide whether to approve or deny Eversource’s Northern Pass application by September 30.

Eversource claims the hydropower from Canada will save New Hampshire ratepayers $60 million annually. Opponents are concerned about how much residents would ultimately benefit from the project and if they would end up getting stuck with the construction bill.

Although a majority of the speakers are against the energy project, some said the benefits outweighed the risks.

“There is no perfect solution when it comes to building out our energy infrastructure, but it seems to me that Northern Pass has struck the optimal balance,” said Tom Farrelly, a commercial realtor in Manchester.

Michael Skelton, president and CEO of the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce, said the state’s economic future depends on new sources of electricity and lower electric rates.

“The key question to consider is, ‘Do the benefits outweigh the potential impacts?’ and the benefits unquestionably, yes, outweigh the impacts,” he said. “This is the best large-scale option we have before us right now with real tangible benefits to our state.”

The hearing saw two Republican state representatives speak out on opposite sides of the project.

Rep. Herb Richardson, R-Lancaster, said most people in the North Country favor Northern Pass because it would bring jobs and new tax revenues for towns along its route.

Rep. Brad Bailey, R-Monroe, said the North Country depends on the tourism industry and the project would ruin New Hampshire’s vistas, drive away jobs, and ultimately not lead to lower electric rates.

Students from Yale University traveled to the hearing to voice their opposition to the project. They also went to publicly ask the university’s administration to end its lease with Northern Pass. Bayroot, LLC is owned by Yale’s endowment and has a land agreement with Eversource which includes 24 miles in Coos County the company can use for the transmission lines.

However, the entities signed an updated agreement earlier this month extending the lease for another 93 years.

At a separate hearing on Thursday, Gov. Chris Sununu’s nominee to lead the state’s Department of Environmental Services (DES) was grilled over his position on Northern Pass.

“I think the issue is balance,” said Robert Scott, Sununu’s nominee. “I haven’t heard all the testimony to understand are the negatives outweighed by the positives.”

Sununu has been a fervent supporter of Northern Pass since his gubernatorial campaign last year. Scott currently sits on the SEC since he is one of the three state Public Utilities Commissioners, but he has recused himself from the Northern Pass evaluation process and indicated he would continue to do that if confirmed as DES commissioner.

More testimony at the Northern Pass public hearings is expected to include Granite State lawmakers, like Republican Reps. Bing Judd of Pittsburg and Neal Kurk of Weare. Expect to see more emotions and passionate pleas from residents before the SEC makes its final decision.

“I want you to know and I want you to understand that I would cut out my tongue and dig out my heart with a spoon before I would come to any conclusions I believe would be injurious to the town I love so much,” said Meredith Briggs of Deerfield. “Deerfield is my past, Deerfield is my present, and Deerfield is my future.”

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On the last day of conference committee work in the New Hampshire State House, a deal was reached to fund full-day kindergarten, but a bill aimed to improve water quality standards stalled in committee.

A last-minute deal was reached Thursday between GOP members of the House and Senate on using revenue from the lottery game Keno to fund the legislature’s plan for full-day kindergarten, but Democrats no longer support the bill. They say it doesn’t fully fund the program for all cities and towns and local communities are going to be left to pick up the bill. Exactly how much the state would spend per-pupil will depend on how much revenue is raised from taxing Keno.

The amendment presented by Sen. Jeb Bradley, R-Wolfeboro, guarantees school districts that want full-day kindergarten an extra $1,100 per kindergarten pupil. The state currently offers school districts an “adequacy grant” for half-day kindergarten of $1,800 per student, which is half of the $3,600 for students in grades 1-12. About 75 percent of the school districts in the state have already adopted full-day kindergarten using local property taxes to pay for it.

Democrats wanted the second half day of kindergarten to be fully funded at $1,800 per student in exchange for support on legalizing and regulating Keno. However, Republicans were cautious to do that out of concern that Keno would not generate enough revenue to support the full amount.

The amendment guarantees that at least $1,100 will go to funding full-day kindergarten since they are confident enough Keno revenue will be raised to do that. The state will fully fund the program at $1,800 if Keno revenues are enough. If not, the grants will be pro-rated per community at an amount between $1,100 and $1,800 depending on the exact amount that is raised from Keno.

Gov. Chris Sununu has made full-day kindergarten a priority for his first term in the Corner Office. While funding negotiations have constantly changed over the past few months in the State House, he applauded the deal lawmakers made and said it was a “first step” in getting the program fully funded.

“This is not a time for partisan politics, we need to get this done,” he said in a statement. “This is one of the most transformative pieces of legislation, and more progress for kindergarten than this state has ever seen.  As revenues increase, the amount of funding can increase for kids. It is not only a first step, it is a real plan that funds full-day kindergarten across every community in this state.”

But Democrats say this isn’t the deal they agreed on. Senate Democrats called it a “shell game.”

“Senate Democrats have been leading on Kindergarten for years, and we are glad Governor Sununu has at least attempted to follow our example. But, today’s failure to support full-day kindergarten like any other grade while giving even more tax cuts for the wealthy elite is a major disappointment and once again demonstrates Governor Sununu’s failure to lead,” said Senate Minority Leader Jeff Woodburn.

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Steve Marchand called the “kenogarten” policy “disingenuous.”

@GovChrisSununu suggesting #Kenogarten policy fulfills promise is disingenuous. NH towns lack certainty, poor ones lack funding. #nhpolitics

— Steve Marchand (@marchandsteve) June 15, 2017

Former 2016 Democratic gubernatorial nominee Colin Van Ostern was active on Twitter to express his disappointment that the deal reached in the conference committee didn’t guarantee full funding of kindergarten at the $1,800 level.

This after FULL funding had passed both NH House & NH Senate overwhelmingly. So disappointing. https://t.co/lmPNZnWcbP

— Van Ostern for NH (@ColinVanOstern) June 15, 2017

The full-day kindergarten bill is expected to pass in the House and Senate next week.

A separate bill that would lead to stronger standards for a toxic chemical in more than 200 communities’ drinking water ultimately died in committee.