Green airport, concept and general development framework

Abstract

Airports around the world are increasing their efforts to reduce their environmental impacts by implementing environmental management systems. This line of action of the airport industry, which has been in place for no more than fifteen years, aims to transform the airport into what is called a “green airport.” This is understood as an airport whose design, operation, and administration are carried out in such a way that its environmental impact is as low as possible, making its management sustainable. Therefore, this article presents a general framework for developing the concept, along with an analysis of airport operational processes that negatively affect the environment. Based on this, policies, strategies, and management processes are suggested that allow minimizing or canceling these adverse effects on the airport environment to bring it closer to the concept of a “green airport.”