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In the December 2008 edition of
Model Aviation, AMA president Dave Mathewson reported on a new video that has been produced by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) office that manages Superfund Sites. Dave said, "For the past several
years, AMA's East Coast Flying Site Assistance Coordinator, Joe Beshar, has been working to develop a partnership
with the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). His intent is to use reclaimed Superfund landfills
as model aircraft flying fields. Joe's efforts resulted in a signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the
EPA and AMA. Essentially this indicates that the EPA endorses the use of these closed Superfund landfills as model
flying fields. Today, because of Joe's work and that of many AMA members, a number of chartered clubs
across the country are flying from reclaimed sites. The EPA has been so pleased with the results of this effort
that last fall they began work on a short film highlighting the positive results of our MOU.
Reclaiming
closed Superfund landfills is directed by the EPA, but control of the individual facilities rests with the local
stakeholder, frequently the municipality in which the landfill resides. The film, Soaring the Superfund Skies, is
directed toward the leadership of these municipalities and attempts to show the value of using these sites in
their communities for modeling activities. The primary advantage for us is that these sites are open,
flat, and usually away from populated areas. Allowing a model club to use a site means that it is well maintained
and becomes an asset to the community as opposed to an eyesore, which benefits the community. The film
focuses on Superfund sites, but it will also be of value to our members and clubs when they approach owners and
managers of other sites appropriate for model aviation flying fields. The film should be released by the time this
issue of Model Aviation reaches you."
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