National Academies Press: OpenBook

Airport Sustainability Practices (2008)

Chapter: CHAPTER FOUR Drivers, Priorities, and Barriers to Sustainability Practices

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Suggested Citation:"CHAPTER FOUR Drivers, Priorities, and Barriers to Sustainability Practices." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Airport Sustainability Practices. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13674.
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Suggested Citation:"CHAPTER FOUR Drivers, Priorities, and Barriers to Sustainability Practices." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Airport Sustainability Practices. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13674.
×
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Page 13
Suggested Citation:"CHAPTER FOUR Drivers, Priorities, and Barriers to Sustainability Practices." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Airport Sustainability Practices. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13674.
×
Page 13
Page 14
Suggested Citation:"CHAPTER FOUR Drivers, Priorities, and Barriers to Sustainability Practices." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Airport Sustainability Practices. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13674.
×
Page 14

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9 compares the top five current drivers for sustainability prac- tices with the top five future drivers identified by the survey respondents. current drivers for sustainability The survey respondents identified state/regional and federal regulations as key drivers for implementation of sustainabil- ity practices at airports, along with airport policies, corpo- rate responsibility, and stakeholder concerns/relations. Table 2 shows the proportion of respondents from different-sized airports who selected these five drivers. The following were not identified by any survey respondents as current drivers for airport sustainability practices: Global trends (e.g., climate change)• City/local regulations• Aviation Industry Association (e.g., position papers)• Economic incentives (e.g., rebates)• Customers• International regulations (e.g., EU directives, • International Aviation Authority policies). Future drivers for sustainability For the future, global issues such as climate change were identified as the most common drivers for implementation of airport sustainability practices and programs. This may be closely linked to another key future driver—stakeholder concerns/relations. Airport policies, corporate responsibil- ity, and federal regulations were also among the top five future drivers. Table 3 shows the proportion of respon- This synthesis sought to identify drivers, priorities, and bar- riers for implementing sustainability practices at airports and how these might change in the future. Specifically, the study sought to identify: The main driving forces (present and future) behind • sustainability practices. Airports’ top priorities for improving sustainability.• The main barriers to implementation of sustainability • practices. Future trends.• exisTinG and FUTUre driVers For sUsTainaBiLiTY As sustainability becomes a bigger issue for the aviation industry, it is important to understand what motivates air- port operators to improve their environmental, social, and economic performance. Changes in behavior can be attributed to external influences or internal changes in an organization. The survey questions related to sustainability drivers focused on the motivations behind the sustainability prac- tices already implemented in airports and the drivers for future practices. Survey respondents were asked to rank the top five drivers (with 1 being the highest) of their sustain- ability practices from the following list: State/regional regulations• Airport policy• Federal regulations• Corporate responsibility• Stakeholder concerns/relations• City/local regulations• Global trends (e.g., climate change)• Economic incentives (e.g., rebates)• International regulations (e.g., European Union direc-• tives, International Aviation Authority policies) Aviation Industry Association (e.g., position papers)• Customers.• Survey respondents did not select economic incentives, international regulations, or customer satisfaction as key drivers for implementing sustainability practices. Figure 4 CHAPTER FOUR driVers, prioriTies, and Barriers To sUsTainaBiLiTY pracTices Rank Current Future 1 State/Regional Regulations Stakeholder Concerns/ Relations 2 Airport Policy Global Trends 3 Federal Regulations Airport Policy 4 Corporate Responsibility Corporate Responsibility 5 Stakeholder Concerns/ Relations Federal Regulations FigURE 4 Current and future drivers for sustainability.

10 TABLE 2 PROPORTION OF RESPONDENTS FROM U.S. AND NON-U.S. AIRPORTS WHO SELECTED THE TOP FIVE CURRENT DRIVERS FOR SUSTAINABILITY PRACTICES Airport Size Current Driver for Sustainability Practices S ta te / R eg io na l R eg ul at io n A ir po rt P ol ic y F ed er al R eg ul at io n C or po ra te R es p. S ta ke ho ld er C on ce rn s/ R el at io ns % R es po nd en ts U.S. Airports Non- Hub (1) 100% 100% 100% 0% 0% Small Hub (2) 50% 0% 50% 0% 50% Medium Hub (4) 75% 50% 50% 100% 75% Large Hub (9) 89% 78% 33% 56% 56% Non-U.S. Airports Continental Europe (5) 100% 80% 60% 40% 20% Asia (1) 0% 100% 0% 100% 100% United Kingdom (1) 100% 0% 0% 0% 100% Canada (2) 0% 0% 100% 100% 100% TABLE 3 PROPORTION OF RESPONDENTS FROM U.S. AND NON-U.S. AIRPORTS WHO SELECTED THE TOP FIVE FUTURE DRIVERS FOR SUSTAINABILITY PRACTICES Airport Size Future Driver for Sustainability Practices S ta ke ho ld er C on ce rn s/ R el at io ns G lo ba l T re nd s A ir po rt P ol ic y C or po ra te R es p. F ed er al R eg ul at io n % R es po nd en ts U.S. Airports Non- Hub (1) 100% 0% 0% 0% 100% Small Hub (2) 50% 0% 0% 0% 50% Medium Hub (4) 100% 75% 50% 75% 75% Large Hub (9) 56% 44% 56% 44% 33% Non-U.S. Airports Continental Europe (5) 40% 60% 40% 60% 40% Asia (1) 100% 100% 100% 100% 0% United Kingdom (1) 100% 100% 100% 100% 0% Canada (2) 100% 50% 100% 100% 50% U.s. airports U.S. airports mainly identified environmental practices as key priorities for the future, followed by social and then economic practices. Under environmental practices, respon- dents from large and medium airports consistently men- tioned energy, green buildings, and climate change. The sustainability practices included: Energy conservation, efficiency, demand management, • and baseline audit. Emission (CO2) reductions. • Clean energy production and clean fuel vehicles.• Use of green building principles, sustainable design, • and high-performance buildings. Green building certification using Leadership in • Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), a green building rating system developed by the U.S. Green Building Council. Other priorities for the future identified by respondents included social practices such as employee health and well- being, increased employee use of public transit, and maxi- dents from different-sized airports who selected these five drivers. The following were not identified by any survey respon- dents as future drivers for airport sustainability practices: State/regional regulations• City/local regulations• International regulations (e.g., EU directives, • International Aviation Authority policies) Economic incentives (e.g., rebates)• Customers• Aviation Industry Association (e.g., position papers).• sUsTainaBiLiTY prioriTies The survey asked respondents to list their priorities for implementation of sustainability practices in the next five years. Table 4 summarizes the sustainability priorities for the next five years, as identified by the survey respondents. The table is organized into the survey subtopic areas of envi- ronmental, economic, and social practices.

11 These respondents also mentioned energy, climate change, water, waste, and stakeholder relationships. Respondents from airports in continental Europe, Asia, and Canada listed a variety of future priorities related to improving governance of sustainability at their airport, such as: Corporate social responsibility.• Implementing the UN Global Compact (see box).• Ensuring stable financial performance.• Improving strategic environmental management.• the United nations global Compact is a framework for businesses that are committed to aligning their operations and strategies with 10 universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labor, the environment, and anticorruption. as the world’s largest corporate citizenship initiative, the global Compact is first and foremost concerned with exhibiting and building the social legitimacy of businesses and markets (“global Compact…” 2007). mizing mass transportation to and from the airport and onsite. The three small and non-hub U.S. airport respondents identified other priorities for the future related to economic performance, such as: Economic self-sufficiency of the airport.• Economic growth of the airport and the community.• Capacity enhancement.• Revenue growth.• Non-U.S. Airports Respondents from non-U.S. airports also focused on envi- ronmental practices, followed by social and economic prac- tices. Noise, aesthetics, and sustainable transportation issues were mentioned by respondents from continental Europe and the United Kingdom (UK): Noise insulation scheme.• Minimizing operations noise.• Improvement of railway infrastructure to the airport. • TABLE 4 PRIORITIES SELECTED BY RESPONDENTS FROM U.S. AND NON-U.S. AIRPORTS FOR FUTURE IMPLEMENTATION OF SUSTAINABILITY PRACTICES Airport Size Environmental Practices Economic Practices Social Practices O T H E R M ea su ri ng a nd M on it or in g W at er C on se rv at io n W at er Q ua li ty C li m at e C ha ng e A ir Q ua li ty L an d U se B io di ve rs it y M at er ia ls W as te N oi se a nd A es th et ic s E ne rg y G re en B ui ld in gs H ir in g A nd P ur ch as in g C om m un it y C on tr ib ut io ns Q ua nt if yi ng S us ta in ab il it y C on tr ib ut io n to R es ea rc h an d D ev el op m en t In ce nt iv iz in g S us ta in ab le B eh av io r P ub li c A w ar en es s an d E du ca ti on S ta ke ho ld er R el at io ns hi ps E m pl oy ee P ra ct ic es & P ro ce du re s S us ta in ab le T ra ns po rt at io n A ll ev ia ti ng R oa d C on ge st io n A cc es si bi li ty L oc al I de nt it y C ul tu re a nd H er it ag e In do or E nv ir on m en ta l Q ua li ty E m pl oy ee W el l- be in g P as se ng er W el l- be in g N um be r of R es po nd en ts P ri or it ie s U.S. Airports Non-Hub (1) 1 2 Small Hub (2) 1 2 Medium Hub (4) 1 1 1 1 1 1 4 2 Large Hub (9) 1 4 1 7 4 1 1 1 1 Non-U.S. Airports Continental Europe (5) 1 1 2 1 1 1 2 3 Asia (1) 3 United Kingdom (1) 1 1 1 Canada (2) 1 1 1 1 2

12 the success of implementation difficult. Less common responses included: Strong political variability (continental Europe).• Limited time to devote or dedicate to sustainability • (Asia). Lack of experienced professionals (Canada).• Lack of understanding of social sustainability • (Canada). Barriers To iMpLeMenTaTion The survey also sought to identify the reasons behind failed or slow implementation of sustainability practices at U.S. and non-U.S. airports. Respondents were asked to list three barriers to implementation of sustainability practices at their airports. Table 5 shows the five key barriers identified by respon- dents and gives the proportion of U.S. and non-U.S. airport respondents who identified these topics as impediments to sustainability practices at their airports. U.s. airports A lack of funding was identified as the key barrier to imple- mentation of sustainability by 10 of the 16 U.S. respondents. A variety of other impediments received roughly equal men- tion: lack of staffing, lack of management support, lack of an environmental culture, and limited staff understanding of sustainability. Respondents from small and medium U.S. airports espe- cially cited lack of management support or an environmen- tal culture in their organization, whereas respondents from large airports were more likely to mention lack of funding, lack of staffing, and lack of understanding/knowledge as barriers. non-U.s. airports As with their U.S. peers, respondents from non-U.S. air- ports—especially those in Asia and the UK—identified lack of funding as the most common barrier. Unlike any other non-U.S. respondents, one of the continental Europe respondents identified that the absence of a culture and behavior that supports sustainability practices makes TABLE 5 PROPORTION OF RESPONDENTS FROM U.S. AND NON-U.S. AIRPORTS IDENTIFYING KEY BARRIERS TO IMPLEMENTATION OF SUSTAINABILITY PRACTICES Airport Size Barrier To Sustainability Practices F un di ng S ta ffi ng M an ag em en t C ul tu re / B eh av io r T ra in in g/ U nd er st an di ng / K no w le dg e % R es po nd en ts U.S. Airports Non- Hub (1) 100% 0% 0% 0% 0% Small Hub (2) 50% 0% 50% 0% 0% Medium Hub (4) 75% 0% 0% 25% 0% Large Hub (9) 56% 33% 11% 22% 33% Non-U.S. Airports Continental Europe (5) 60% 0% 20% 20% 0% Asia (1) 100% 0% 0% 0% 0% United Kingdom (1) 100% 0% 0% 0% 0% Canada (2) 50% 50% 50% 0% 50%

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TRB’s Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) Synthesis 10: Airport Sustainability Practices explores airport sustainability practices across environmental, economic, and social issues.

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