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Public Document Library Table of Contents

Environmental Impact Statements (EIS)

State law mandates the preparation of an EIS for a public project like the Magnuson Park lighted fields. An EIS is simply a report that identifies possible environmental impacts (including effects on people as well as ecosystems) that may result from a particular project. It is prepared to help government decision makers (e.g., Parks Department, Seattle City Council, etc.) and the general public evaluate the impacts of decision(s) before them. Using information from an EIS, it is then up to decision makers to determine whether or not to proceed with a project as proposed, or to make changes to reduce likely impacts (mitigation).

Three sets of EIS documents have been published for the Magnuson Park project (all are available via Park Department's Magnuson Park EIS page):

  1. Somewhat prematurely called the "Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS)," this three volume set of over 1,000 pages was published on July 2002. It describes the proposed project in detail and addresses a wide range of potential project impacts.
  2. A 100 page "Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS) " was published in May 2003 at the behest of the Seattle Hearing Examiner after a successful legal challenge by Friends of Magnuson Park (www.saveourpark.org). This document focuses solely on the noise impacts on wildlife. [For more information on this legal challenge, see the brief Friends of Magnuson Park (FOMP) Legal Proceedings to Date.]
  3. An 80 page "EIS Addendum" was published in December 2003 to reflect a minor set of changes made to the project by the Seattle Parks Department as part of an agreement with the Low Income Housing Institute (LIHI) which runs a transitional housing facility in the park, adjacent to the proposed fields.

Before delving into the EIS, you may want to review a brief project map and description.

The table below focuses solely on sections of the EIS pertaining to field lights.

Number / Title / Dates / Link

Summary

Title: Chapter 2.9 of the Dec. 2003 EIS Addendum, "Light and Glare"

Link: EIS-AddendumChapter2_section2.9.pdf (348 KB)

Notable quotes:

  • The project will "produce significant, unavoidable light and glare impacts associated with surface luminance and sky glow." (page 2-29)
  • "... 116 acres within the park would be subject to increased luminance produced by the sports field lights, and light reflected from surfaces in the park would travel in all directions to surrounding areas. The increased surface luminance would result in reflected glare and sky glow, and could make it difficult for off-site observers to view dark elements within or adjacent to the park." (page 2-27)

Title: Chapter 3.9 of the Jul. 2002 Final EIS, "Light and Glare"

Links:
Main Text: 3_9.pdf (116 KB)
Diagrams: 3.9-3.pdf (253 KB), 3.9-4.pdf (478 KB)

Notable quotes:

  • "The synthetic athletic field surfaces would be the greatest contributor to reflected glare." (page 3-147)
  • "This reflective light would travel in all directions and strike other surfaces within and outside the park, and would be reflected again and again. Areas within and bordering the park would receive reflected light even if they did not receive light directly from a source." (page 3-153)
  • The areas affected "include a large area of the surface of Lake Washington and considerable portions of the suburban development east of the lake." (page 3-151)
  • "The glow of the air around the park might be observable for several miles away from the park." (page 3-155)

[Page last updated 3/12/04]