County Wants State Environmental Funds for De-Icing Facility at Airport

WHITE PLAINS-Westchester County has requested a total of $7.75 million in funding from New York State to fund a number of environmental projects in the county, including the construction of a radiant de-icing facility at Westchester County Airport. The funding request is one of eight applications the county has submitted to the state from the 1996 Clean Water/Clean Air Environmental Bond Act that was approved by voters.

The largest funding request is $5 million to help finance the de-icing facility, according to Westchester County Executive Andrew Spano. The facility would cost $10 million, with the county government contributing the other $5 million.

As proposed by the county, a central aircraft de-icing facility would be built on a six-to eight-acre site at the airport. The facility would de-ice with radiant heat, as an alternative to chemical aircraft de-icing and an advanced catchment system for the chemical de-icers that will continue to be used, county officials note.

“We believe the project will substantially improve water quality in Blind Brook and the Long Island Sound Estuary and that it will demonstrate cutting-edge technology in the management of aircraft de-icing chemicals,” Spano said.

The other funding requests forwarded to the state involve park acquisition for trails and water quality improvement projects affecting the Bronx River, the Long Island watershed and the Croton Reservoir watershed.