How Sea-Tac’s Expansion Fight Lands Squarely on Vashon’s Doorstep

The Seattle Times recently reported that the cities of Burien, Des Moines and SeaTac have appealed the Federal Aviation Administration’s approval of 31 expansion projects at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, including a second terminal with up to 19 new gates. You can read the full article here: Cities appeal Sea-Tac airport expansion plans, including new terminal .

At first glance, the story looks like it belongs squarely on the mainland. Airport cities are pushing back on growth, the Port is pushing forward, and the FAA is trying to keep traffic flowing through one of the country’s busiest hubs. But tucked into this same narrative is Vashon Island. The article calls out Vashon Island Fair Skies as a separate petitioner challenging the FAA’s findings and highlights a problem islanders have been talking about for years: more planes, more noise, more pollution and fewer meaningful ways for the community to be heard.

A regional expansion with island-level consequences

The Port’s Sustainable Airport Master Plan is built around one core assumption: demand for air travel in the Puget Sound region will keep growing. The plan breaks that down into 31 near term projects targeted for completion or groundbreaking by 2032, including new cargo facilities, extended taxiways, an employee parking lot and a second terminal. The Port is planning for roughly 56 million passengers a year, up from around 52 million in 2024.

For airport cities, the concern is straightforward. More planes and more passengers mean more noise, more traffic and more strain on neighborhoods that already live with 1,200 daily takeoffs and landings. Residents in Burien, Des Moines and SeaTac say they hear hundreds of flights a day and that current mitigation efforts are not keeping up with real world conditions.

For Vashon, the picture looks different on the ground but is driven by the same growth curve. The island does not get hotel tax revenue or rental car lots. It does not have airport jobs or parking structures to offset the impact. What it does get is more low level traffic overhead and the experience of aircraft noise in a rural setting where every sound carries.

Vashon Island Fair Skies enters the fight

Vashon Island Fair Skies has been organizing around these concerns for years, focusing on how changes in airspace management have shifted plane traffic and noise over the island. In this latest round, the group filed its own petition challenging the FAA’s finding that the 31 projects would not significantly affect the “quality of the human environment.”

Their core arguments line up with what many islanders experience day to day. The FAA’s analysis, they say, did not properly account for:

First, the cumulative impact of years of changes. The article notes that the FAA looked at a limited geographic area and treated different changes to the airspace, runways and procedures as though they were separate issues rather than a combined shift in how planes move through the region. For Vashon, that means the effect of the third runway, the NextGen air traffic system and current expansion plans have not been fully evaluated together.

Second, the reality of rural noise. Traditional noise modeling often assumes a level of background “city” sound that simply does not exist here. On Vashon there is no constant freeway roar or downtown traffic to mask aircraft noise. A single low and level jet over a quiet pasture can be more disruptive than dozens of flights over an urban core. Islanders notice each pass. That subjective experience is exactly what many residents are trying to communicate, and it often gets lost in models that describe “average” noise over large areas.

Third, the accuracy of noise measurements and assumptions. The petition argues that the FAA relied on outdated data and “archaic science” when it calculated who is impacted and how. If the baseline assumptions are off, communities like Vashon may not even show up on the map as significantly affected, even while residents feel tangible changes in their homes, gardens and outdoor spaces.

NextGen, low and level flying, and a broken promise

The Seattle Times story connects today’s legal challenge to a longer technical arc. In 2004, the FAA began rolling out the Next Generation Air Transportation System, commonly called NextGen. The promise was efficiency. Planes would follow precise satellite guided paths and glide smoothly to lower altitudes, reducing fuel burn, cutting emissions and minimizing level segments that are inefficient and noisy.

For Vashon, the implementation has felt like the opposite. According to Vashon Island Fair Skies, the way the system has actually been used around Sea-Tac has produced more low and level flying over the island. Planes that were supposed to be gliding are instead coming in lower, holding level, and bringing noise and pollution closer to the ground.

This is not just about annoyance. It is about the expectation that federal systems will be implemented as advertised and that when they are not, affected communities will have a clear path to seek correction. Because NextGen was delayed and rolled out unevenly, Vashon advocates say they effectively “timed out” of their window to file formal challenges on that original change. Now they are trying to make sure the cumulative impact of these earlier shifts is finally considered in the context of the new master plan.

Why this matters for Vashon’s future

This is where the story goes beyond flight paths and legal filings and moves into long term planning for the island.

First, it is about quality of life. Vashon markets itself and understands itself as a rural community. People move here or stay here for quiet evenings, for the sound of birds and ferries, for the ability to hear the wind in the trees. When aircraft patterns change and noise becomes a constant background feature, it fundamentally reshapes how residents experience their homes. That is not something that shows up easily in a decibel chart, yet it defines what makes this place distinct.

Second, it is about environmental health. Low level flights increase exposure to ultrafine particulates and other pollutants that can affect human and animal health. In a community that values agriculture, organic food, and outdoor recreation, those impacts cannot be treated as an afterthought. If Sea-Tac’s growth strategy leans heavily on more frequent, lower altitude flights over rural areas, island residents have a direct stake in how those trade offs are evaluated.

Third, it is about equity and representation. Airport cities like Burien are already arguing that they shoulder a disproportionate share of the airport burden without seeing equivalent economic benefits. Vashon sits even further outside that loop. The island supports the regional economy, contributes tax revenue and relies on good air service for travel and tourism, but it does not have an obvious seat at the airport planning table. When the FAA draws tight geographic lines around its environmental study areas, islands and rural communities risk being defined out of the conversation.

Finally, it is about governance and trust. The Port has committed to outreach and engagement as it moves through its own environmental review. For that engagement to build trust, communities need to see their lived experience reflected in the data and in the options under consideration. If residents feel that feedback is collected only to “check a box” rather than influence outcomes, mistrust grows and legal challenges become the only remaining tool.

What islanders can do next

Vashon is small, but it is not powerless. The fact that Vashon Island Fair Skies is mentioned in the same breath as major airport cities is itself a sign that the island has a recognized role in this debate. The current legal petitions create a window where data, testimony and local experience can carry weight.

Residents who care about this topic can start by reading the Seattle Times coverage and the underlying documents when they are available, following updates from Vashon Island Fair Skies, and staying alert to public comment periods as the Port’s own environmental review moves forward. Participation does not have to be technical to be meaningful. Clear descriptions of how aircraft noise and patterns have changed over time can help ground the numbers in real life.

This is also an opportunity for local organizations, neighborhood groups and businesses to think strategically. If Sea-Tac is planning for long term growth, Vashon can plan for long term advocacy. That might mean building stronger relationships with regional decision makers, showing up consistently in comment processes, and aligning with other communities that face similar issues. Treating this as an ongoing program, rather than a one time reaction, puts the island in a better position as airport planning continues.

Shaping the soundscape we live with

The Sea-Tac expansion story is not just about a bigger terminal or more gates. It is about who gets to shape the soundscape, environment and quality of life across the Puget Sound region as air travel grows. For Vashon, that means asking hard questions now about how much noise and pollution is acceptable, how those impacts are measured, and how island voices are included in decisions that will play out over decades.

The Seattle Times article captures a critical moment where airport cities and Vashon are pushing back, not simply to stop change, but to demand that the path forward is transparent, data driven and fair. The planes overhead may feel far removed from local farms, shorelines and town conversations, yet they are now part of the island’s story. How Vashon responds will help decide whether that story is written for the community or with it.