Farnborough Airport’s environment manager talks exclusively to TRANSFORM about how the site became the world’s first business aviation airport to achieve carbon neutral status.
What were the first steps you took towards carbon neutral status?
The first step is to understand your carbon footprint and what emissions are your responsibility. You want to make sure there are no ‘double-counted sources’, where you are measuring emissions that are someone else’s responsibility. That means looking at your entire organisation, from the infrastructure that you own and operate to the facilities, the equipment and the way your staff interact with them. By doing that, you can set a baseline for your carbon footprint – you know you are creating a certain amount of carbon emissions, and where you need to reduce them from. Over the past decade we have reduced our footprint by 42% just through technological, operational and training projects.
Does that include indirect emissions from aircraft?
Our carbon neutral certification covers scope 1 and scope 2 emissions, which we have direct control over. Scope 1 includes fuels used directly on site. Scope 2 emissions are off site, mainly to do with how the electricity we source is produced. We monitor scope 3 emissions, which include emissions from aircraft on the ground and equipment such as auxiliary power units, but those are not under our direct control.
What were the biggest challenges?
Ensuring everyone in the organisation knew what our target was. There are now specific environmental responsibilities highlighted in every job description, and if you get a job at the airport, you have to go through a training programme that covers all aspects of environmental performance. Our policy is easily available to staff as part of our ISO 140001 certification, and it is published around the site in hard copies, as well as on our internet and ethernet sites. It is also important that you have support from the top level of the company – that’s where the responsibility starts. It percolates throughout all levels of management and down to those working operationally.
“It is important that you have support from the top level of the company”
How important was ISO 140001 in achieving carbon neutral status?
It has run hand in hand with the carbon accreditation scheme, helping drive environmental awareness across the site and providing a framework for us to address issues with continual improvement. This all falls into three categories: improving technology, improving procedure and improving staff awareness and training. We have made small changes, such as lagging pipe work in a hanger, as well as large projects, such as upgrading lighting to LEED – a huge opportunity to reduce our electricity use.
What other initiatives have you been involved in?
To apply for carbon neutral status, you have to take part in projects that offset residual emissions. One programme we got involved in was a scheme that reduces deforestation in the Amazon and was independently VCS and QAS verified. We have also taken part in a local initiative that involved planting 3,500 trees around the local school. This is having an ongoing impact – the trees are used in educational programmes on the environment and habitat, and also visually improve the area.
Do you have any other targets for the future?
There are three areas that we will always have to address: carbon reduction, waste management and noise pollution. Achieving carbon neutral status was just one milestone, and as we apply for that certification each year, we will have to offset less emissions as the years move on. We have already achieved zero waste to landfill and want to improve our recycling rates, and we are also going to wage war on single-use plastic. Noise is also an issue that we have addressed in the past, engaging with our local community. We have had an airspace change proposal approved, and we invite the public to talk to us. I have gone out and had cups of tea in people’s gardens, talking about the concerns they have and trying to build better relationships. This is all part of a continuous improvement for the long term.
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