Air Pollution

An environmental issue that affects everyone including airport managers is air pollution. Up to this point in human history society has been in a race for innovation and industry, now society is at a point in determining the safest way to sustain our achievements. This directly affects airport managers as society becomes more conscious of air pollution and how to manage the problem by asking lower emissions from aviation operations.

            Air pollution is defined by the National Resource Defense Council (NRDC) as the release of pollutants into the air that are detrimental to human health and the planet as a whole. (NRDC, 2021). Air pollution is therefore an unfortunate byproduct of burning fossil fuels like jet fuel, as fuel is combusted gases like carbon dioxide are released into the air attributing to the total rise of the earths temperature (NRDC, 2021).

            Luckily the FAA and collaborators in support of reducing total emissions in a safe effective manner have laid out a plan to help reduce emissions related to the aviation industry. In 2004 legislation introduced the Voluntary Airport Low Emissions (VALE) program to help encourage aviation sponsors to participate in emissions reductions (FAA, 2020). As a product available to commercial service airports VALE enables positive change through Airport Improvement Program (AIP) funds to help facilitate change (FAA, 2020). 

                                                                                    Photo Credit: Businesswire.com

Suggestions from the VALE program for airport managers include funding for projects such: as remote ground power to reduce requirements to utilize an APU by providing clean electricity, replacing gas powered ground service equipment like loaders tugs and tractors with electric powered alternatives, or solar thermal technologies to offset the use of fossil fuel hot water systems (FAA, 2020).

References

F.A.A. (2020, September 9). Voluntary Airport Low Emissions Program (VALE) Airports. Faa.Gov. https://www.faa.gov/airports/environmental/vale/media/VALE-brochure-2020.pdf

Largest electric ground service equipment (eGSE) fleet at new york’s JFK. (2019). [Photo]. https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190926005676/en/JetBlue-Introduces-the-Largest-Electric-Ground-Service-Equipment-eGSE-Fleet-at-New-York%E2%80%99s-JFK-International-Airport-Cutting-Four-Million-Pounds-of-Greenhouse-Gas-Emissions-per-Year

Turrentine, J. M. J. (2021). Air Pollution: Everything You Need to Know. NRDC. https://www.nrdc.org/stories/air-pollution-everything-you-need-know