Environment
Environmental
Management
Systems
The aviation sector delivers huge economic and social benefits. However, its activities also affect the local environment and globally through climate change. Local Air Quality, Noise, Waste, Greenhouse Emissions, all these impacts need to be rigorously managed through a well structured Environmental Management System.
A global strategy
to mitigate
environmental
impact
Environmental Management Systems provide a comprehensive framework aiming to clearly identify, evaluate, modify and reduce environmental impacts of an Organisation. Airports have an important role to play in this field, as they have the possibility to implement initiatives to mitigate and avoid as much as possible environmental challenges not only at a local level, but also influencing the global impact of aviation, through good carbon (and other GHG) management. This strategy implies engaging with local communities in the process, adapting the measures to the particularities of where airports are located, and complying with environmental regulations at all levels. Noise, Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, energy, water, waste and ecosystem management are some of the necessary aspects of a total environmental management system in and around airports.
It is essential to have a full grasp of the airport situation and the expectation of all parties involved before setting up en Environmental Management System.
There are both international and European certification standards that can help demonstrate your commitment to excellence in Environmental Management:
ISO 14001:2015: this standard mainly focus on the management aspect of the Environmental Management System and is based on the implementation of environmental systems. It provides practical tools for organisations looking to manage their environmental responsibilities including specific approaches for audits, communications, labeling and life cycle analysis.
ISO 50001: supports organizations in all sectors to use energy more efficiently, through the development of an energy management system. EMAS III : is similar to ISO 14001. Developed by the European Commission,
EMAS III is a standard based on EU regulation EN/1221/2009, and is mainly focused on the environmental performance of the Environmental Management System. It has a higher stringency than ISO 14001.
A well-designed EMS will find synergies with other management systems, and provides clear directions to make environmental management more cost-effective, more efficient, and allows for continuous improvements in environmental performance. It helps to drastically reduce environmental incidents and increase awareness among employees.
Envisa assists airport in setting up their Environmental Management System, and can provide airport-adapted support for certification.
