Sustainable Master Planning

Charlie McDermott, LEED AP

Courtney Armbruster, LEED AP

C&S Companies

Agenda Growth of sustainability Sustainable planning process Case study—Ithaca Tompkins

County Regional Airport Community outreach Higher education involvement Lessons learned Q&A

Growth of sustainability in aviation Industry efforts:

Sustainable Aviation Guidance Alliance (SAGA) FAA, ACC/ACI, AAAE initiatives and committees

Airport efforts: LAWA Sustainability Sustainable Airport Manual (SAM)

Sustainability plans Denver San Diego Seattle Portland

Airport planning and sustainability

What does it mean?

Why is it important

?

How is it different ?

What are the

benefits?

The sustainable master plan process

Sustainability baseline assessments Specialized data collection

Can involve many different types of specialists

Conduct baseline assessments in each sustainability category

Identify weak points and make recommendations

Sustainability categories Hazardous materials, waste

management and remediation Surface transportation

management Socioeconomic benefits and

community outreach/involvement

Land use Buildings and facilities Design and construction

Air quality enhancement and climate change

Energy conservation and renewable energy

Noise abatement Water quality protection and

water conservation Land and natural resources

management Materials use and solid waste

reduction/recycling

Setting goals and targets Need to establish tangible and

measurable goals in each sustainability category

Work with stakeholders and sponsor to identify goals in alignment with overall mission for sustainable master plan

Options evaluation Identify facility requirements Evaluate each project option

against a number of criteria: Airport design standards Best planning practices Contribution to sustainability

goals and targets Development cost Facility requirements Implementation feasibility Potential environmental

impacts Strategic vision of airport

Alternatives evaluation Highest-ranked project options

are developed into alternatives Consider sustainability

throughout by using two-step decision process 1) Maximize existing facilities first2) Build as a last resort and as

sustainably as possible

Best alternative scenario becomes the airport layout plan

Identify additional independent sustainability measures

Case Study: Ithaca Tompkins Regional Airport Ithaca, NY

Located in Finger Lakes region of upstate New York Home to Cornell University and Ithaca College

Primary, non-hub commercial service airport with approximately 100,000 enplanements

Single runway configuration—6,601 x 150 feet Carriers = Delta, Continental/United, US Airways Regional jets and turboprop aircraft Destinations are four large northeast hubs Current master plan is 15 years old

Ithaca is a very progressive and environmentally focused community

Tompkins County has established emissions reduction goal

Lessons learned can be scaled up or down Synergy exists between sponsor, community,

and other stakeholders Supportive, forward-thinking airport manager FAA approved use of entitlement funds

The right community for a “green” airport project

Planned projects Terminal building TSA space needs Additional de-icing pads T-hangars Apron lighting layout CFR/airport admin space needs Fuel facility additional capacity Reserve land west of terminal apron Additional vehicle parking for peak

periods Sidewalks

Recommended sustainability initiatives Electric vehicle charge points Compressed natural gas fueling station Ground power for GA aircraft Photovoltaic panels Enhanced recycling program Green procurement guidelines Energy efficiency improvements Low/no mow areas Green vehicles and equipment Water conservation Enhance pedestrian access to airport

Finding greener ways to meet facility requirements Terminal expansion

Found way to maintain existing footprint for short-term

Ensure future addition is built to LEED standards

Increased vehicle parking Reconfigure existing lots to add more spaces

with minimal additional pavement Develop shared parking agreement for

overflow spaces for peak demand periods

Community outreach Developed advisory committee at

outset of project Diverse makeup of group

Sponsor Airlines Tenants Users Academics Local sustainability experts

Benefited from combination of unique perspectives

Community outreach Developed custom website

www.Sustainable-ITH.com Project updates Downloadable documents Meeting recaps

Online passenger, business, and pilot surveys Used not-for-profit donation funded

by C&S as incentive for participation Display and handouts set up in

terminal during peak period Giveaways in terminal to increase

awareness of project

Higher education involvement Cornell University and Ithaca College are

world leaders in sustainability and boast several LEED Platinum buildings

Both campuses have signed American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment, pledging to mitigate their negative impact on climate change

The campuses are significant contributors to passenger traffic at the airport

College connection Four classes involved in project

Environmental Stewardship Ecological Literacy Sustainable Practices in Operations &

Technology (MBA course) Social & Non-Profit Marketing

Consultant team and airport manager made presentations to each class

Throughout semester, team fielded questions and facilitated site visits

Student research Students researched variety of sustainability

initiatives and options for airport and developed reports and presentations

Topics included: LEED EB certification Landscaping options Recycling Voluntary carbon offsets Green roofs Solar photovoltaics and renewable energy Taxiway lighting Composting Community involvement and outreach Transportation demand management

Benefits of student involvement Opportunity for students to engage

in groundbreaking project Get young adults involved in the

aviation industry Generated innovative and creative

ideas Access to unique expertise and

resources Hope to establish long-term

relationship with colleges

Lessons learned—so far! Sustainability must be integrated—

consider it in every decision Complete inventory/baseline

assessments before goals are established

Centralize data collection Keep advisory committee small but

diverse Electronic surveys/community-based

incentives worked well Leverage higher education and local

sustainability resources

Thank you for coming!Questions?www.Sustainable-ITH.com