Millions of dollars in funding allocated today for a high school in New Jersey but the money isn't for teachers or school supplies instead it's for sound proofing.
Becton High School is one mile away from Teterboro Airport and ten miles away from Newark Liberty. That adds up to dozens of planes passing overhead every school day.
Congressman Steve Rothman can't even explain the noise problem at Becton High School without being drowned out by the sound of a plane passing by.
"The local school boards decided they wanted to reduce the noise," he said.
Becton High School, which serves students from East Rutherford and Carlsdadt, will get $18 million to soundproof the school.
Adding new windows and air conditioning is expected to muffle the roar of the planes.
"It breaks the concentration of the class, the teachers can't talk and it happens at least once every class," says Kyle Torres.
Experts measured the decibel level when a plane passes by, and it's 90 decibels which is about the same as standing next to a lawn mower.
Fixing the school should bring the level down to 50 decibels, about the same as a normal conversation.
The work is expected to take two or three years. Backers of the plan say the money for the project is from airport improvement fees, which are included in the cost of a plane ticket.
The project will also create 100-150 new jobs.
Becton Regional to be soundproofed against air traffic noise
EAST RUTHERFORD — The familiar and distracting roar of aircraft passing close over Henry P. Becton Regional High School soon will be muted by an $18-million federally funded project to install soundproofing doors and windows.
U.S. Rep. Steve Rothman (D-9th) on Monday assured students will no longer face potential educational disadvantage from putting up with the constant noise as he delivered an $18-million check to the school district to install the needed improvements.
The federal money comes from the Federal Aviation Administration’s Airport Improvement Program. And the two-year project to decrease noise levels will begin in a couple of weeks, officials said.
“The noise level inside the building got louder and louder as more and more planes started to land at Newark and Teterboro [airports],” Rothman said during the press conference held at the school.
“Kids couldn’t hear their teachers [and] teachers couldn’t communicate with their kids with the sounds of planes roaring overhead.”
Another $12 million — largely in state money — will go into the renovation, including a state-of-the art central air conditioning and a heating and ventilation system.
The construction project will create 100 to 200 jobs, Rothman said.
“Sometimes it’s really good to be a congressman,” he said. “It’s practically [going to be] a brand new school.”
The federal government pledged the federal money in June, several years after allocating the funds.
Part of the delay occurred years ago when several large schools were eligible and simultaneously applied for limited noise abatement grants. At the time, the FAA also questioned whether low-flying aircrafts truly posed a problem, according to school officials.
“No longer will staff and students fight the noise,” said Becton Principal David Mango at the conference.
This year, the FAA required schools that had already qualified for funding to undergo testing to determine if noise levels exceeded 65 decibels — a volume loud enough to distract students, federal officials said. Microphones on the roof of Becton and inside a second-floor biology classroom recorded levels which exceeded the federal threshold and topped previous levels captured in 2003. Noise levels reached 80 decibels at the school. FAA reports list that level — equal to the noise on a busy street — as damaging to the learning process including in comprehension and communication, according to findings of the Federal Interagency Committee on Aviation Noise.
Becton was founded in 1971 and is near bustling Newark Liberty International and Teterboro airports. Federal officials estimate more than 1.6 million flights have flown over it since 2007.
“We got used to it,” said Brielle Felten, a 16-year-old junior, as the second plane in as many minutes flew over.
But Amina Hoti, a16-year-old junior, says the planes didn’t bother her and referred to disruptions that the construction will bring: “I’m not looking forward to having class in a trailer,” she said.
Katie Scalera, student council adviser, said students in different wings will have class in trailers as construction crews revamp separate wings.
Several municipal officials attended the event.
“It took a few years, but we got there, and no one lost sight of that,” said Mayor James Cassella.
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