ACI-NA 2013 Environmental Achievement Awards Honour Vancouver, Victoria Airports
| Airports Council International-North America (ACI-NA) announced the winners of the 2013 ACI-NA Environmental Achievement Awards on August 21st. The Vancouver Airport Authority and Victoria Airport Authority were awarded the top prize in their respective category.
"We were extremely impressed with the quality of all the airports' submissions this year, and the strong competition once again highlighted airports' commitment to reducing our industry's environmental footprint," stated ACI-NA's interim president Deborah McElroy.
The Vancouver Airport Authority's Green Commuter program was awarded the top prize in the "Outreach, Education and Community Involvement Award Category" and the Victoria Airport Authroity received the award in the "Mitigation Award Category" for its work on the Reay Creek Restoration project
Vancouver Airport Authority's studies show that the airport growth rate within 20 years will put a heavy burden on current infrastructure through increased vehicle trips. To mitigate this, the airport launched the Green Commuter Program in 2005 to encourage employees to use forms of transportation other than single-occupancy vehicles. The program includes planning, infrastructure, education and promotion of biking to work though 'Bike to Work Week'.
Reay Creek flows from Victoria Airport to the ocean near Sidney, B.C., and is an important spawning habitat for coho and chum salmon. Unfortunately, industrial pollutants have made negative impacts on water quality in Reay Creek, causing degradation of fish habitat. Although the airport was not the cause of the pollution, it implemented a comprehensive stormwater management program and developed a long-term restoration plan to reduce concentrations of pollutants in Reay Creek. Construction began in 2012 and since then contaminant loads have been reduced, showing no signs of heavy metal pollutants.
Award winners will be recognized at the 2013 ACI-NA Annual Conference and Exhibition in San Jose, California on September 25th.
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Ottawa International Airport Becomes First Major Airport with Runway Grooves
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The Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport has become the first major airport in Canada build a grooved runway.
The 2,400-metre runway was grooved as part of a full reconstruction of the east-west landing strip. The grooves are designed to improve drainage and provide increased friction to improve safety.
Prior to the runway reconstruction, the runway met Transport Canada's standards, and these changes brought the runway's standards in line with both the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the United States Federal Aviation Authority (FAA).
"The Ottawa Airport Authority is continuing its leadership and commitment to providing our passengers and crews with the safest possible environment", said Ottawa airport authority President and CEO Mark Laroche. "Grooving, which will be done to FAA standards, has received the support and praise of the major domestic airlines that serve Ottawa as well as their chief pilots. We are proud to be the first major airport in Canada to groove its runways."
The Ottawa airport's runway reconstruction was a multi-phased project that began in 2011. The final phase, which will reconstruct the airport's 10,000 foot landing strip, is scheduled to occur in 2014.
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YYC's Airport Trail Tunnnel Scheduled to Open May 2014
| A new 620-metre tunnel, which runs under the new airport runway at the Calgary International Airport, is scheduled to open in May 2014.
As the City of Calgary closes out its work on the project, the remaining work will be completed by the Calgary Airport Authority.
"The project managers and work crews have done an outstanding job in meeting the many tight deadlines and we are all look ing forward to the completion of this project," said City of Calgary general manager of transportation Mac Logan.
According to the City of Calgary, highlights of the Airport Trail tunnel project include:
- The removal of approximately 440,000 cubic metre of rock and earth material
- The installation of underground utilities such as water for firefighting purposes and storm drainage pipes to manage storm water
- The installation of communication/surveillance system, fire detection system, emergency egress accommodations, ventilation system, electrical system (including emergency/back-up), and traffic control system will progress as the overall tunnel project is completed
The tunnel is projected to cost about $295 million.
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Hamilton City Councillor Looks to Revisit Lease with Airport Operator
| Hamilton councillor Chad Collins is seeking a review of the city's lease with the company that operates the John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport due to disappointing revenue and a decrease in the number of passenger flights.
The 40-year lease was signed in 1996 and is up for review for the first time in 2016. Mr. Collins would like subcommittee established to examine the current lease and clearly define who is responsible for the airport from a financial and regulatory standpoint - the City of Hamilton or TradePort.
"I've been very critical of the lease we have now, and it was certainly celebrated as being a big win for the city for benefits," Collins told the city's general issues committee on August 12th. "I think a lot of issues have been exposed publicly over the last 10 years."
In an interview with CBC News Hamilton, Mr. Collins noted that the biggest outstanding issue was the extension of the airport's shortest runway.
An upgrade was supposed to happen within the first 20 years of TradePort's lease, which is nearing that point in its agreement. According to Mr. Collins, however, the city has yet to be presented a plan or design to indicate that investment is on the horizon.
The subcommittee could set timelines for those improvements and consult with Hamiltonians on what they want to see from the airport, according to Mr. Collins.
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Alan Syliboy Completes Live Mural at the Halifax Airport
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Alan Syliboy puts the final touches on his mural titled 3D Butterfly at the Halifax International Airport. Photo credit: HIAA.
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Mi'kmaq artist Alan Syliboy completed his live mural titled 3D Butterfly at the Halifax International Airport. Mr. Syliboy worked on his mural from August 9th to 11th.
Crowds of people gathered at the airport and others watched the event online as it was live-streamed on Halifax International Airport Authority's website.
This print depicts a butterfly/man and is done with the Mi'kmaq double curve motif which symbolizes life. The butterfly represents the freedom of the soul to wander and it flies in the ray of Grandfather Sun, the giver of life.
"To have something that everyone will see every day, day in, day out. I think that's a very exciting prospect to have people look at it and talk about it every day," Syliboy said in an interview with the Chronicle-Herald.
Mr. Syliboy wants the piece to serve as a reminder to visitors that there are Mi'kmaq people here in Nova Scotia.
"I think it's a real signpost. I think it's a very positive thing to have here," said Mr. Syliboy.
The mural now hangs on a wall in the airport's main lobby.
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