2021 Session Content

Virtual Program

The 2021 ANE Symposium was hosted virtually to ensure attendees could stay healthy and did not have additional large financial burdens. Sessions began on Tuesday, February 23rd starting at 8:00 a.m. PST, lasting approximately 4 hours each day and concluded on Friday, February 26th. With 326 attendees watching 26 presentations in our 8 sessions, our first virtual symposium was a resounding success. Each presenter participated in a post-session personal video chat with attendees that allowed for more in-depth discussions of the various topics. We are immensely grateful to our presenters for sharing their knowledge with attendees. 

You are welcome to review the symposium presentations we hosted below which will have the PDF of the powerpoints attached in mid-April. However, due to the conference format restrictions and additional time constraints, the symposium did not host any trainings. You may review prior year trainings on their websites: 

Monday, February 22

Aviation Noise Officer Meeting

Hosted By: Sam Tan, DFW & Sandy Lancaster, DFW

This year’s Aviation Noise Officer Meeting provides a unique opportunity for symposium attendees to review the COVID recovery and planning actions to address new community concerns. Vince Mestre will start with a brief overview of his book “A Guide to U.S. Aircraft Noise Regulatory Policy” and Mike McKee will follow by sharing the Denver Noise Program and Recent Challenges. Finally, a panel discussion between Mike Jeck, MWAA, Sjohnna Knack, San Diego, Xiaobo Liu, PANYNJ and Sandy Lancaster, DFW will review how COVID impacted their airport operations and how the community responded as well as any planning efforts for community engagement with public as operations return. We anticipate an informative exchange about past and future aircraft noise regulatory policy.

Speakers:

Tuesday, February 23

Aircraft Noise and Overflight Dispersion: Opportunities and Challenges

Session Chairs: Jorge Rodriguez Cifuentes, MITRE & Anne Hollander, Montgomery County Quiet Skies Coalition

The implementation of NextGen airspace modernization programs such as Metroplex and the increased use of satellite-based navigation has brought numerous safety, efficiency, and environmental benefits. However, it has also concentrated noise and overflights for some communities directly under the flight paths. In 2018, due to the growing demands of communities seeking relief from increased noise concentration and overflights, Congress required the FAA to consider dispersion or other lateral track variations when proposing or amending departure procedures. Dispersion has the potential to mitigate the effects of noise and overflight concentration, however, it can be challenging to implement without impacting safety and efficiency or raising noise and overflight concerns for other communities.

Speakers from a variety of perspectives will share their thoughts regarding the problem and its potential solutions. What do successful dispersion concepts look like? Can they be implemented while maintaining safety and efficiency? Will they meet community expectations and address their concerns? Join this session and find out.

Presentations:

Dispersion in the Age of RNAV

Presented By: Jim Allerdice, Managing Partner, ABCx2

A discussion concerning the use of PBN Procedures to create track variability at two representative airports. (PDF Presentation)

Aircraft Noise and Overflight Dispersion: Opportunities and Challenges – Dispersion at Charlotte Douglas International Airport

Presented By: Daniel Gardon, Noise Abatement Specialist, Charlotte Douglas International Airport

Charlotte Douglas is unique in that the Airport has pushed for disperse flight tracks for nearly 40 years. This case study details the challenges and benefits associated with implementing aircraft dispersion patterns at an Airport, and shows that dispersion is not a ‘silver bullet’ for noise concerns in a region. (PDF Presentation)

Section 175, Understanding Dispersion

Presented By: Michele Cruz-Murner, Senior Advisor, Air Traffic Services, Western Service Area, Federal Aviation Administration & Beth White, Senior Strategist for Public and Industry Engagement, Air Traffic Organization, Federal Aviation Administration

An examination of the specific language included in Section 175, as well as a description, discussion and understanding of the dispersion of flight paths. (PDF Presentation)

Session Sponsored by Envirosuite

Doubling Down: Implementing Noise Reductions During Recovery

Session Chairs: Veronica Bradley, Airlines for America, Steve Alverson, Environmental Science Associates

Prior to the COVID-19 crisis, U.S. airlines were transporting a record 2.5 million passengers and 58,000 tons of cargo each day. As travel restrictions and stay-at-home orders were implemented, demand for air travel declined sharply hitting passenger airlines hard, while air cargo operations remained strong with their critical role in combatting COVID-19. Notwithstanding the passenger industry’s long road to recovery, U.S. airlines are maintaining their commitment to reduce noise impacts on local communities. During this session, you will hear from U.S. airline representatives about how COVID-19 has impacted their noise work, highlighting recent accomplishments and near-term goals in reducing noise through fleet makeup and operational improvements.

Panel Discussion Speakers:

No PPT presentations to share. 

Session Sponsored by Crawford, Murphy & Tilly

Wednesday, February 24

The Direct and Indirect Impacts of Aviation on Human Health

Session Chairs: Jennifer Landesmann, Sky Posse Palo Alto, Xiaobo Liu, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

This session will present recent studies on direct impact on human health from both air quality and noise standpoints. The impacts of aviation on human health is complex and complicated. More and more studies have been conducted to understand the impact from different levels and different perspectives. Through the discussion, the session hopes to provide a holistic view on the impact of aviation.

Presentations:

Residential noise exposure and health: Evidence from aviation noise and birth outcomes

Presented by: Susan Averett, Department of Economics, Lafayette College

Utilizing information on exact home addresses on birth records, we exploit arguably exogenous variation in noise exposure triggered by a new Federal Aviation Administration policy called NextGen, which unintentionally increased noise levels in communities experiencing concentrated flight patterns. We examine the fetal health impact of exposure to noise levels in excess of the EPA and the WHO recommended threshold of 55 dB. We find that the likelihood of having low birth weight (LBW) babies increases by 1.6 percentage points among mothers who live close to the airport, in the direction of the runway, exposed to noise levels over the 55 dB threshold, and during the period when NextGen was more actively implemented at the airport. Our finding has important policy implications for the trade-off between flight pattern optimization and human health in light of the long-term impact of LBW on later life outcomes. (PDF not publicly available)

Preterm birth rates among mothers exposed to ultrafine particles from jet exhaust

Presented By: Neelakshi Hudda, Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Tufts University 

We analyzed the records for all births between 2008 and 2016 to mothers residing within 15 km of Los Angeles International Airport and assessed their exposure to ultrafine particles (UFP, particles < 100 nm) originating from jet exhaust. We evaluated whether this exposure was associated with increased rates of preterm birth (PTB) and found that In utero exposure to jet exhaust origin UFPs was positively associated with PTB. We will present the context, methods, and results of this study. The results are of public health concern because UFP exposures affect large, densely-populated residential areas in vicinity of many major airports. (PDF Presentation)

From Research to Implementation: a perspective after 20 years of public health research

Presented By: Mathias Basner, Professor of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine

Dr. Basner will reflect on his work as a noise-effects researcher over the past 20 years, including obstacles in the translation from research results to noise policy and regulation. (PDF not publicly available)

How will Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) benefit communities?

Session Chairs: Yolanka Wulf, CAMI, Alex Gertsen, National Business Aviation Association, Gabe Andino, Teterboro Airport

This session will explore the integration of advanced air mobility into communities by considering the role of smaller regional and GA airports in these communities. This role will include various aspects of electric aviation, including IFR and VFR flight services, charging infrastructure, and maintenance. However, this role can be expanded to provide broader services to the community, including serving as a charging hub for ground transportation, as a collection site for clean electricity, as a hub for multiple modes of transportation, and as a distribution center for goods and services. With cleaner and quieter operations, and expanded opportunities, small airports can become a significant asset for their community. Speakers will present on advanced air mobility, transportation planning and case studies of GA airports incorporating AAM.

Panel Presentation & Discussion

(PDF Presentation)

Thursday, February 25

Climate Change and Aviation: Opportunities in the Midst of Adversity

Session Chairs: Rachel Burbidge, EUROCONTROL, Eric Lu, Ramboll, Ian Jopson, NATS

Despite the devastating impact of COVID-19, tackling climate change remains high on the aviation sector’s agenda. This session will discuss the efforts that airports and the aviation industry are continuing to pursue to address that challenge. The financial impact due to the COVID pandemic on airports and airlines has forced the industry to re-assess how resources are used. The challenges of climate change, however, still exist and are growing. Airports and the aviation industry continue to focus on approaches to reduce and minimize GHG impacts, and on preparations for the adaptation to climate change. Speakers in this session will discuss how airports and aviation are finding opportunity in the adversity that the industry currently faces.

Presentations:

The Road to Aviation Recovery – A European Perspective

Presented By: Marylin Bastin, Head of Aviation Sustainability, EUROCONTROL

Marylin Bastin will discuss how COVID-19 has impacted European air traffic, and how the sector is planning for a sustainable recovery.  She will analyze aviation’s role in meeting both the European Green Deal target of a 90% reduction in CO2  emissions for the transport sector and the goals of the EU Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy. She will present the operational improvements already made by the EUROCONTROL Network Manager along with the collaboration and optimization initiatives made in partnership with the European Aviation Industry. Finally, she will examine the sector’s Short, Mid and Long term carbon neutrality and zero emissions targets announced during the COVID crisis. (PDF Presentation)

A Case Study: SFO Tackling the Challenges of COVID & Climate

Presented By: Erin Cooke, Director, Sustainability & Environmental Policy, San Francisco International Airport

San Francisco International Airport continues to advance its Strategic Plan Goal to become the world’s first net zero energy, net zero carbon and zero waste airport campus as a key tenant of its pandemic and economic recovery to resilience pathway. Join this session to hear about one airport’s case study on varied “zero” initiatives and learn how SFO makes a triple bottom line business case to ensure their investments benefit the airport, workforce and partner operators. Attendees will learn about SFO and industry definitions of “zero” – net energy, net carbon, waste; measures that enhances SFO costs and resources to effectively allow SFO to continue to move forward amidst the pandemic; about the third-party rating systems that legitimize and offer a guide path to “zero”; and engaging campus concession and airline partners. (PDF Presentation)

Civil Society Expectations for a Green Recovery

Presented By: Tim Johnson, Aviation Environmental Federation

With the hope that 2019 will be seen as the peak year for aviation emissions, Tim Johnson will lay out the expected path for a green recovery within the aviation industry. The Industry and ICAO should embrace a net zero by 2050 target as that pathway would be consistent with the Paris Agreement and place a growing emphasis on tackling non-CO2 climate impacts as well. Tim will provide a review on how industry currently ‘owns’ the debate, and has led the setting of current targets and voluntary commitments. Tim will emphasize that the ICAO and the states need to set targets to create accountability for delivery of emissions reductions, and thus consumers and investors could have greater leverage over airline behavior. Tune in to the presentation to learn about these issues as well as how carbon pricing will be needed to support SAF uptake and innovation within the industry. (PDF Presentation)

Recovering from the COVID Pandemic – The Airline Perspective

Presented By: Tim Pohle, Senior Managing Director, Environmental Affairs, Airlines for America

COVID-19 has intensified focus on climate and sustainability issues: the expectation is that after recovery businesses will be more sustainable. This is true for airlines.  Airlines’ strong commitment to environmental stewardship and responsibility predates the COVID crisis, as reflected in airlines’ very strong existing environmental goals.  Despite the devastating economic impact of COVID-19, airlines look to a future where they will continue to invest in and contribute to progress. Moving forward, airlines will continue to focus on the pillars that have allowed them to make great progress already: infrastructure, operations, and technology, including Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). Meeting ambitious climate and sustainability goals will require cooperation across all stakeholders. Ramping up SAF production as quickly as possible is going to be critical to meeting these goals. A vibrant, healthy aviation industry that continues to provide tremendous economic and social benefits will be essential to achieving sustainability in the future.  (PDF Presentation)

Aviation Emissions: Reduction Efforts and Current Research

Session Chairs: John Pehrson, CDM Smith, Robbie Gross, Crawford, Murphy & Tilly

This session will exhibit the current efforts and research toward understanding and reducing aviation-related emissions. There are various sources of air pollutant and greenhouse gas emissions at airports including, but not limited to, aircraft, ground support equipment (GSE), aircraft auxiliary power units (APUs), passenger and employee motor vehicles, construction activities, and building energy use. Airports are actively working toward understanding and reducing emissions from these sources, however doing so is often complicated by the varying levels of ownership and control of the sources, as well as the involvement of multiple stakeholders. Additionally, there is ongoing research into the efficacy of various emission reduction efforts and their best means of implementation. This session will include presentations from airport representatives on their efforts, successes, and lessons learned. Additionally, research and results pertaining to aviation-related emissions and reduction methods will be presented.

Presentations:

Reducing emissions, contrails and climate impact from aviation – Highlights from recent aircraft campaigns

Presented By: Christiane Voigt, German Aerospace Center

New studies suggest that contrail cirrus contribute the largest share to the climate impact form aviation. Large uncertainties remain, caused in part by unknown microphysical properties of those contrail cirrus. Here,  I will present results from recent international aircraft campaigns with partners from NASA, NRC, and DLR, which directly probed engine emissions and contrail formation at cruise altitudes. I will discuss their climate impact and address mitigation strategies to significantly reduce the climate impact of future aviation by novel fuels. (PDF Presentation)

FAA Aircraft Technology Research for Reduced Fuel, Emissions, and Noise

Presented By: Chris Dorbian, Federal Aviation Administration

The FAA is developing certifiable aircraft and engine technologies that reduce noise and emissions while increasing fuel efficiency in partnership with industry through the Continuous Lower Energy, Emissions and Noise (CLEEN) program. Technologies developed by the CLEEN Program will result in an aircraft fleet that generates lower noise, uses less fuel, and produces fewer emissions, thus supporting the overarching environmental performance goal for NextGen to achieve environmental protection that allows sustained aviation growth. This presentation will provide an overview of the FAA CLEEN Program, including past successes and future plans. (PDF Presentation)

Setting the Framework for Aviation Air Quality Monitoring Studies during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Presented By: Robbie Gross, Crawford, Murphy & Tilly

As aviation is just one of many sources of emissions, it can be difficult to determine and validate the impact of aviation on air quality in a community. Many airports are also located near other significant emissions sources including busy roads and highways, as well as industrial sources. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, airports around the world experienced a drastic decrease in aircraft operations, and therefore aviation-related emissions followed suit. As unfortunate as the pandemic has been, it creates a unique opportunity to improve our understanding of aviation’s contribution to air quality. Since there are several types of air pollutants with a range of characteristics and behaviors, the effect of the decreased operations can have a high degree of variability. Moreover, there are many factors involved in determining the fate and transport of emitted pollutants including local meteorology, atmospheric chemistry, and the contribution of other sources which have also been impacted by the pandemic. Nonetheless, there is now an impetus to investigate air quality monitoring data near airports during the pandemic to better understand the impact of aircraft operations on air quality. Speaking from experience, this presentation will discuss a framework by which such studies can be performed, provide recommendations on how to interpret the data and results, and how to best utilize the information. (PDF Presentation)

Friday, February 26

Aircraft Noise and Emissions Legislation in the Next Congress: Priorities, Perspectives, and Predictions

Session Chairs: Anne Hollander, Montgomery County Quiet Skies, Anne Kohut, Airport Noise Report/Aviation Emissions Report, Dave Carbone, LGN Aviation Policy Group,

This session will focus on federal legislation addressing aircraft noise and emissions that is likely to be introduced or reintroduced during the 117th U.S. Congress, which convened on Jan. 3, 2021. The new Congress must balance the needs of a struggling aviation industry battered by COVID-19 with the growing demands of communities seeking relief from aviation health and environmental impacts. Speakers from a variety of perspectives will share their thoughts regarding legislative priorities and specific provisions that might have enough support to pass the House and Senate in light of the outcome of the Nov. 3 presidential and congressional elections. Could the Airport Noise and Capacity Act of 1990 be amended? What are communities’ legislative priorities? What legislation will the House Quiet Skies Caucus introduce? Could there be any win-win legislative outcomes for the industry and communities? Join this session and find out.

Presentations:

Aircraft Noise and Emissions Legislation in the Next Congress: Priorities, Perspectives, and Predictions

Presented By: Darlene Yaplee, Aviation-Impacted Communities Alliance & Palo Alto Citizens

This presentation will discuss national legislative priorities and predictions, based on the speaker’s experience and perspectives from other members of aviation-impacted communities. (PDF Presentation)

Presentation Title: Prospects for Action on Noise in Congress

Presented By: Jacqueline Hamilton, Office of Congressmember Karen Bass

Implementation of NextGen flight path changes significantly increased the number of citizens reaching out to their federal representatives for noise relief.  Does it matter?  How does it work?  How can you be an effective advocate with your representatives and what might happen on noise-related issues in the 117th Congress? (No PDF available)

Aircraft Noise and Emissions Legislation in the Next Congress: Priorities, Perspectives, and Predictions

Presented By: Peter J. Kirsch, Partner, Kaplan Kirsch & Rockwell

This presentation will discuss the prospects for noise- and emissions-related legislation in the 118th Congress and the implications of the new administration on federal law concerning aircraft noise. (PDF Presentation)

Community Groups and Organizations Workshop

A Conversation with the Authors of A Guide to U.S. Aircraft Noise Regulatory Policy

Hosted By: Anne Kohut, Airport Noise Report and Aviation Emissions Report, Dave Carbone, LGN Aviation Policy Group, Anne Hollander, Montgomery County Quiet Skies, Jennifer Landesmann, Sky Posse Palo Alto

This year’s Community Workshop provides a unique opportunity for symposium attendees to ask two of the leading experts on the development of U.S. aircraft noise policy – Sanford Fidell and Vincent Mestre – about their new book, which provides the history, context, and analysis necessary to understand contemporary U.S. aircraft noise policy. We anticipate an informative exchange about past and future aircraft noise regulatory policy. Join us for what promises to be an illuminating hour and a half-long Q/A.

Presentation & Discussion:

The book and it’s chapters are available for purchase on amazon or here: https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9783030399078

(PDF Presentation)