AOPA is urging officials in Talbot County, Md., to expedite the topping or removal of trees long recognized as obstruction hazards at the Easton/Newnam Airport.

“The need to undertake this project was first identified in 2003 during an Environmental Assessment study for another project at the airport,” wrote Bill Dunn, AOPA vice president of airport advocacy, in a Sept. 15 letter to County Council President Levin Harrison. The letter reminded officials of their contractual obligations flowing from acceptance of federal airport development funds, including protection of the airport’s aerial approaches. “The FAA has invested over $30 million in this airport and that investment must be protected” Dunn later added.

“Airport administration has gone to great lengths to follow legal process and mitigate any environmental impact of a removal and trimming project, yet the trees remain uncut,” Dunn wrote in the letter. He urged that the county “move rapidly to gain all additional approvals and approve completion of a project that is long overdue.”