Whether or not its intent is to deceive, a petition seeking to stop EA-18G Growlers from flying over the Olympic National Park is a misleading attempt to bully the U.S. Forest Service and Navy into submission.
Started by New Orleans grassroots organizer Aaron Viles, the petition is rife with misinformation about what the Navy is proposing.
Members of the Protect the Olympic Peninsula delivered their petition with more than 120,000 signatures to the Forest Service protesting Navy flights over the national park.
Of the 120,000 signatures on the petition, only 8,000 are from Washington state — about 6.6 percent — and only about 65,000 are from the United States. The majority of signers are from Spain, France, India and Portugal and other countries.
According to the website truthout.org, Viles works with citizen authors to create petitions focused on “environmental and other progressive causes.” That sounds a lot like his job is creating petitions and getting anyone he can to sign them.
On the website Care2Petitions, Viles’ petition implies the Navy proposes to begin flying over the Olympic Peninsula and that the Forest Service can prevent that.
“The Navy will be using these war games to test electromagnetic weaponry, which has some experts raising significant concerns about potential health impacts to birds, amphibians, and humans, as well,” the petition states.
In fact, Navy jets from Whidbey Island Naval Air Station have practiced over the Olympics for decades. What the Navy is currently seeking is approval to use Forest Service roads to drive trucks that emit signals no more powerful or dangerous than those of a television news van.
Whether or not the Forest Services allows the Navy to use the roads, the jets will continue flying over the Olympics. If use of the Forest Service roads is granted, the Navy estimates it will save American taxpayers $4.6 million per year in reduced flight time because the jets currently conduct these practices in Idaho.
It’s apparent the signers of this petition are responding emotionally to the misleading language, not based on the the facts. It also seems many of those who signed the petition will put their name on anything purporting to protect the environment.
Viles’ petition perpetuates unfounded assertions previously utilized by anti-noise crusaders to buoy their battle against Growler landing practices at Outlying Field Coupeville.
Here are the facts: The best available science from reputable scientific organizations confirms the conclusions of the military’s environmental assessment … that there is no harm to humans, wildlife or plants from the jets conducting electronic warfare training practices.
The Forest Service should view this petition for what it is — another attempt by those who don’t like jet noise to build a consensus that doesn’t exist on an complaint built upon unsubstantiated information.
