Vancouver airport noise waking up its neighbours

A facility designed to minimize overnight noise at Vancouver International Airport is not working effectively, CBC News has learned from residents who say they are still being woken up.

Two months ago, the airport opened what it calls a Ground Run-up Enclosure (GRE), a facility near the south terminal intended to block noise emitted while propellerengines are beingrepaired and tested.

But constructionof the $12-million enclosure hasnt preventedloud noise from reaching residents who live about onekilometre away, across the middle arm of the Fraser River, and it's not clear why.

"It's like having a weed whacker in your yard, full powerconstantly," said Neil Filipek.

Filipek is a pilot and a former member of Richmond's Airport Noise Task Force, the group that recommended the construction of the GRE.

While he thinks the GRE is a step in the right direction, Filipek said a recent overnight complaint that his wife made to the airport revealed that some engine tests, called run-ups, are being performed outside the enclosure.

"My wife asked why the ground run-up enclosure wasn't being used and they said, It wasn't scheduled," said Filipek.

Most overnight run-ups outside GRE

Records supplied to CBC News by the Vancouver Airport Authority show that in the first five weeks of the GRE's operation, between Jan. 24 and Feb.29, there were a total of 642 engine tests, 119 of which less than 20 per cent were performed in the enclosure.

A little fewerthan half of those tests, 54, were conducted overnight.

Not all engine run-up tests are loud, said airport spokeswoman Anne Murray.

"There's all different kind of run-ups," Murray told CBC News. "So, some of the run-ups is just turning the engine on, it's called idle."

The noisiest propeller-engine tests are supposed to be done inside the GRE.

CBC News recorded loud engine test noise in Filipek's neighbourhood at 1:30 a.m. last week, but it was not clear ifthe noise was leaking out of the enclosure or if it wasfrom arun-up being done outside its walls.

Noise complaints will only grow as the weather gets better and windows in the neighbourhood remain open overnight, said Filipek.

"I think that's when it's going to tell whether or not the Ground Run-up Enclosure is doing its job," he said.

A 24-hour noise complaint hotline is operated by the airport, which said it has received few complaints, but promised to crack down on violators.