AUSTIN, Texas — An Austin City Council member is calling for the Austin airport to relocate its proposed jet fuel farm.
Councilmember Vanessa Fuentes is calling on her fellow councilmembers to approve a resolution to relocate the proposed site. The jet fuel facility, "Jet-A," is part of Austin-Bergstrom International Airport's master plan for growth, which was approved by the city council in 2018. It's needed to keep up with increasing airline and passenger demand.
Fuentes is asking the city council to direct the airport to move the jet fuel farm somewhere else. She's also requesting that it require an environmental justice analysis to be performed along with "robust community engagement."
The airport did host an information session on Jan. 29, which was attended by concerned residents in the area.
KVUE previously reported that the plan to build the new facility is already in the works, but residents said they'll continue speaking up. Construction is expected to begin in the spring and should be completed in two years.
Fuentes said the latest project is part of the City's "history of environmental injustice and racism associated with major oil company gasoline tank farm locations in East and Southeast Austin."
"The cleanup of the East Austin farm tanks was only recently completed in 2008," Fuentes said in her letter. "The lives damaged and lost from this preventable decision can never be repaired."
She says the initial environmental assessment was done after the permitting process, she has "concerns about how they took place" and the amount of public input was gathered ahead of time.
Fuentes' resolution will be discussed by city council members at their April 7 meeting.
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