Categories
Environment Articles
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April, 2013New ICAO noise standard: What it means for airports
Aviation noise – a pillar of the European Commission’s ‘Airport Package’ – is perhaps becoming the key environmental issue for many European airports, whose comprehensive noise management strategies highlight their desire to be good neighbours and ensure sustainable growth. The ninth meeting of ICAO’s Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP) in February agreed a new noise standard for newly certified aircraft types. Ross Falconer reports.
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November, 2012Check-in 3 enhances VIE’s green credentials
In fitting with Vienna International Airport’s (VIE) approach to environmental sustainability, the new Check-in 3 facility – also known as Skylink – makes use of a variety of techniques to reduce its environmental impact. Julian Jäger, the airport’s COO and a speaker in the Airport Development Conference at this year’s ACI Airport Exchange, spoke to Ryan Ghee.
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November, 2012Researching Decarbonisation… from the ground up
There are numerous European initiatives aiming to reduce carbon emissions from the aviation industry; the EU’s Emissions Trading Scheme, Airport Carbon Accreditation to name but two. However, one pollution factor perhaps too often overlooked by the public is the pollution from surface access. Industry stakeholders are working together on a project called ‘Decarbonated Airport Regions’ to investigate the issue properly. Marius Nicolescu reports.
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November, 2012Helping high ambitions get off the ground
Solar Impulse, the Swiss solar powered aircraft project, aims to demonstrate that genuine progress is possible using renewable sources of energy. To date, the innovative project has successfully proven that a solar powered airplane can fly day and night without fuel. In 2014, Solar Impulse intends to achieve the first-ever full circumnavigation of the Earth and European airports are keen to help. Claire O’Gorman reports.
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November, 2012Swedavia becomes world’s first carbon neutral national airport group
On 10 October, Sweden’s airport group, Swedavia reached the summit of decarbonisation when it became the very first national airport group in the world to achieve carbon neutrality across its suite of 10 airports. Robert O’Meara reports.
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October, 2012CO2 reduction & efficiency drive go hand in hand for Europe’s airports
Three years on from the launch of Airport Carbon Accreditation, ACI EUROPE took a moment at its 22nd Annual Congress in Madrid to give an update on the programme’s progress in Europe. The announcement – which coincided with the Rio G20 Summit and EU Sustainable Energy Week – provided the latest snapshot of carbon reduction and efficiency gains in this past year. Robert O’Meara reports.
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June, 2012Night flight bans put focus on noise management
Aviation noise was one of the areas included in the ‘Airport Package’ of legislative proposals announced by the European Commission last December. It is also an issue thrust into the spotlight by night flight restrictions recently introduced at Frankfurt and Cologne Bonn airports. Ross Falconer reports on some of the noise abatement measures taking place.
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June, 2012Brussels Airport’s 360° strategy for efficiency
Brussels Airport continues to make impressive strides on energy efficiency and reducing carbon emissions. It was the second airport in Europe to achieve full implementation of Airport Collaborative Decision Making (A-CDM), which has resulted in significant efficiency gains for airlines and aviation partners. It doesn’t stop there. The airport is Airport Carbon Accredited at the ‘Reduction’ level and aims to progress to level 3 – ‘Optimisation’ – by the end of this year. Most recently, it also became the first airport in the world to obtain the ISO 50001 standard for energy management, which provides organisations with a recognised framework for integrating energy performance into their management practices.
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March, 2012Momentum carries Airport Carbon Accreditation beyond Europe
While the major players in the global airline industry remain embroiled in an increasingly dramatic battle regarding aviation’s inclusion the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), airports have been quietly making progress on addressing their own CO2 emissions, through Airport Carbon Accreditation. In November last year, ACI EUROPE joined forces with ACI ASIA-PACIFIC to extend the programme’s availability to its members. Robert O’Meara reports on the latest developments.
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March, 2012Innovative second generation biofuels to reduce emissions
Environmental sustainability remains high on the agenda of Europe’s airports. Their strong commitment to carbon reduction is borne out by the success of Airport Carbon Accreditation which has so far accredited airports representing more than half of European passenger traffic. An interesting development has been the exploration of biofuels. Avinor and Aena, for example, are both researching the possibilities of biofuel production, while Hamburg Airport uses bio methane as vehicle fuel. Ross Falconer reports.
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December, 2011Efficiency at the heart of European airport development
As a key requirement of any airport development project, environmental efficiency is placed towards the very top of the agenda from the initial planning stages through to the day-to-day operation of the facilities. Ryan Ghee explores how the environmental considerations have been managed across three of Europe’s largest ongoing airport development projects.
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June, 2011VINGA: optimising ATM to reduce environmental impact
VINGA (Validation and Improvement of Next Generation Airspace) is a one-year project being undertaken at Göteborg Landvetter Airport within the framework of SESAR. The aim is to validate, through operational trials, the environmental benefits of implementing new ATM procedures. Ross Falconer reports.
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April, 2011Airports hard at work on reducing their CO2 emissions
Airport Carbon Accreditation – the carbon management standard for airports – goes from strength to strength, with a number of significant accreditations since the start of the year. A diverse range of airports either succeeded in becoming part of the Airport Carbon Accreditation family, or upgrading their accreditation level. Robert O’Meara reports.
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January, 2011EC Vice President Kallas commends Airport Carbon Accreditation
18 months ago, Airport Carbon Accreditation was launched at the ACI EUROPE 2009 Annual Congress in Manchester. In the face of challenging times, the programme has nevertheless successfully established itself as the standard for carbon management at airports. Robert O’Meara reports.
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October, 2010European airports collective CO2 reduction adding up!
Launched 15 months ago, Airport Carbon Accreditation has steadily been gaining traction with European airports, despite difficult trading conditions. Robert O’Meara reports on the update at the 20th ACI EUROPE Annual Congress and the recent 5th Aviation and Environment Summit, organised by ATAG.
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March, 2010Strong cross-industry engagement at COP15
The 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was held in Copenhagen in December. The Air Transport Action Group (ATAG) – of which Airports Council International is a member – led a 30-strong cross-industry delegation in Copenhagen, which engaged with international governments and promoted aviation’s aggressive strategy to dealing with its emissions. Paul Steele, Executive Director, ATAG, outlined the key conclusions from the event to Ross Falconer.
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December, 2009Frankfurt: balancing expansion with noise emissions
For any airport, an ongoing commitment to monitoring and reducing the impacts of operational noise on local communities can only be achieved through close collaboration with air transport stakeholders. Louise Driscoll asked Stefan Mauel, Fraport’s head of infrastructure, about Frankfurt airport’s cooperative efforts on noise abatement measures in the context of its €4 billion Airport Expansion Programme (AEP).
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October, 2009AIA: Concrete action on carbon emissions
Athens International Airport (AIA) maintains an intense focus on the issue of climate change. Under the stewardship of Dr Yiannis Paraschis, immediate past-President of ACI EUROPE, AIA was a key contributor in the creation and design of Airport Carbon Accreditation. It is also among the initial participants, turning its commitment to reducing carbon emissions into concrete action. Ross Falconer spoke with Panagiotis Karamanos, Manager, Environmental Services.
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June, 2009CDA action plan to reduce CO2 emissions
The 4th Aviation & Environment Summit took place in Geneva on 31 March and 1 April. The challenges of the economic crisis didn’t diminish participation – the presence of some 400 industry leaders and environmental experts is testament to the continued importance attached by the aviation industry to the challenge of climate change. Ross Falconer reports.
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June, 2009Schiphol striving for carbon neutrality by 2012
Environmental considerations are an integral part of Amsterdam-Schiphol’s corporate strategy. Ross Falconer spoke with Lonneke Reinders, advisor airport development, about the airport’s environmental initiatives, including carbon efficiency, noise monitoring and local air quality.
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