Animal count to be taken

MASSENA — The Massena Town Council has agreed to pay a consultant $61,500 to observe and count beavers, geese, deer and other creatures near the Massena International Airport.

C&S Engineering has been hired to perform a wildlife hazard assessment and draft a management plan that outlines how the town can address the dangers posed by animals and birds living near the airport.

The project will be paid for primarily through an $85,000 Federal Aviation Administration grant awarded to the town this week, along with a 2.5 percent local match the town must contribute to the project.

Town Supervisor Joseph D. Gray said there are a number of wild animals living on or near airport property, including beavers and deer that reside in nearby forests and wetlands, and geese and other birds that land in the airport's fields when passing through the area.

The study will help the town identify which species call airport property home and how many animals are living there, according to a release describing the FAA grant award.

"It will help us get a handle on the extent of wildlife hazard for aircraft," Mr. Gray said. "Birds, deer, any animals that may happen onto the airport property that could potentially be hazardous."

The supervisor said the biggest challenge facing the town in terms of wildlife posing a danger or inconvenience to aircraft is the large swaths of wetlands located on airport property.

"As long as there's wetlands out there, we're going to have wildlife issues," Mr. Gray said. "They're great homes for animals like geese and bad news for aircraft. As far as I'm concerned, the answer is to get rid of the wetlands. But the DEC is probably going to have a different idea about that."

Mr. Gray said it may be possible to make arrangements to remove wetlands, provided an equivalent amount of land elsewhere in the area is converted to wetland habitat, but noted that process is expensive and difficult. The town may consider investigating those options in the future.

In the meantime, the wildlife investigation will help outline the full extent of the critter problems facing the town airport and will provide recommendations on dealing with those creatures to help enhance airport safety.