EUROCONTROL publishes a Specification to foster environmental collaboration at and around airports

Today, EUROCONTROL launched the Collaborative Environmental Management Specification (CEM) that sets out a unique collaborative approach to managing environmental impacts at and around airports.

“The CEM Specification supports and facilitates the already considerable efforts being made by airports, aircraft operators and air navigation service providers to deal with the environmental impact of their daily operations,” observed Frank Brenner, Director General of EUROCONTROL. “It formalises collaboration between these core operational stakeholders by setting out generic high-level requirements and recommended practices, necessary for setting up CEM working arrangements at an airport.” 

The CEM working arrangements, described in the CEM Protocol at the heart of the Specification, support the core operational stakeholders in their awareness and understanding of the interdependencies and constraints of each other’s business as they face up to common environmental challenges. In turn, this can facilitate the development of shared environmental solutions, which they can then take further with joint planning and implementation.

“Environmental impacts, in general noise and emissions, remain a significant constraining factor for efficient and sustainable operations at and around airports,” observed Luc Tytgat, Director Pan-European Single Sky of EUROCONTROL. “Since sustainable airport development is essential for improving European ATM capacity and flight efficiency there is, therefore, a much wider benefit to be achieved when addressing any constraints affecting the wider aviation sector as a whole – and the CEM Specification is very much a part of this kind of approach.”

In addition, the CEM working arrangements facilitate a robust and transparent dialogue that benefits relations between the operational stakeholders and National Regulators, local and regional authorities, land-use planning authorities, local communities (including residents’ associations) and local businesses.

CEM can help stakeholders contribute to the realisation of the Single European Sky (SES) objective  on the sustainable development of the air transport system. It also plays a role in improving both air traffic management’s (ATM) and air navigation services’ (ANS) overall performance in Europe. The CEM Specification was developed in collaboration with stakeholders, including airport operators, aircraft operators, air navigation service providers, trade associations and interested parties. The CEM Specification will be launched at an event at the ACI Airport Exchange Conference and Exhibition on 3 to 5 November 2014. 

1.  Regulation EC No 549/2004 as amended