air

A lawsuit filed by environmental groups alleges the National Park Service and the Federal Aviation Administration violated federal law by approving a plan to regulate air tours over Marin County’s national parks without adequately studying environmental impacts.

The Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, the Marin Audubon Society and the Watershed Alliance of Marin groups are calling on the court to toss the park service’s air tour management plan adopted in January for the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, the Point Reyes National Seashore, Muir Woods National Monument and the San Francisco Maritime National Historic Park.

The groups are seeking a court order requiring an environmental analysis and limiting the number of flights over the parks to 50 per year until a new plan is adopted. The plan allows for about 2,600 trips annually.

“The ability of commercial tour operators to fly above national parks is not a right, it is