[sustran] Re: Examples of "green" airports?

[Dr Adhiraj Joglekar]

Green in what sense? Air pollution or noise? As someone affected by
Heathrow and its owners infinite wish to add more flights, I have
looked in to this a bit. Going 'Green' is relative and definitions
change in time. The BAA continue to think noise affects people when
close to 70 db, the WHO says its more like 50db. Whether someone is
affected or not is considered by averaging out figures. Trouble is
planes fly in to the wind which changes. The easterly winds die out in
summer and peak in spring yet the BAA uses summer averages when
discussing mitigation schemes. 50 years ago a plane flew once every 10
minutes, today its one every 90sec for 18 hours a day. So the claim
that chapter 3 and 4 planes pollute less is theoritical as benefits
are off set by higher frequencies. When airports run at capacity as is
case with Heathrow, one ends up with not one or two but 6 arrival
stacks over areas 15 miles away from the port. Trade offs are hard to
manage. Studies suggest continuous climb procedures reduce departure
pollution, both noise and air. But Heathrow can't implement this as
they will first need to reduce stacks to at least 4. With arrivals, a
continous descent at 3 degree with planes cutting off engines helps
residents close to the port but it means a flatter approach path over
wider areas of the cities. In contrast, a 4 or 5 degree slope affects
less away from the port but wrecks lives of people adjacent to it. As
winds are unpredictable, what helps around Heathrow is alternating
runway use for arrivals. There are 2 paths and the swap at 3pm.
Irrespective of when winds turn, a yearly table tells you week by week
when the path over you is in use. This brings a notion of predictable
relief and control to communities, albeit only with respect to what is
heard ie noise. The people care less on day to day level about the
invisible stuff and hence air pollution at pragmatic level is
secondary (though ev eryone agrees its a global issue and planes
contribute majorly).

Fact that a third of Heathrow users are in transit and equal numbers
flying to places commutable. Y train is forgotten. The high speed rail
can play major role with latter. The former brings little money to UK
and overall the economic case to justify further expansion for sake of
the Nation or region does not hold true (it only lines the pockets of
share holders).

Adhiraj

On 19/08/2011, GDRC|Hari Srinivas <hsrinivas at gdrc.org> wrote:
> Dear folks,
>
> Does anyone have good recommendations of airports that have gone green?
> Any other info on the topic will also be welcome ...
>
> Thanks a lot,
> Hari
>
> --
> Dr. Hari Srinivas,
> Coordinator, Global Development Research Center
> Kobe, Japan
> Email: hsrinivas at gdrc.org
> Web: http://www.gdrc.org/
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> Twitter: twitter.com/gdrcdotorg
>
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