The Alice Knight Memorial Trail is just one of 10 hiking trails in Coonskin Park that would be impacted by the proposed Yeager Airport expansion. 

A proposal to expand Yeager Airport’s runway will destroy about 40% of the wild and forested Coonskin Park in Kanawha County.

During recent scoping meetings held by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) officials shared that the proposed project would eliminate 10 hiking trails and 20 picnic shelters.

More than 400 acres of the park would be impacted and about 2.6 million cubic yards of soil would be excavated from park property to build the 200-foot-high runway.

Coonskin Branch – a tributary to the Elk River – would become part of the runway and the stream's flowing water would be diverted through a culvert. Learn more here. 

The high elevation runway with its runoff, the massive excavation, and diverted Coonskin Branch all create flooding risks, and threats to the Elk River. Yeager Airport has already had one slope failure, and the proposed expansion creates opportunities for future subsidence.

Do you have questions about this project? Are you concerned about the impacts to Coonskin Park and potential flooding risks? You have an opportunity to ask questions and submit comments about what the project should include in its Environmental Impact Assessment (EIS). Comments are due by November 29, 2022 at 5 pm (EST).

We’ve made it easy for you. Fill out this form to send your message directly to the FAA Environmental Program Manager. We have prepared a comment for you, but we encourage you to personalize it. Share how you love and use Coonskin Park. Your personal story is so important!