Initiated by Eurocontrol, with the support of ACI Europe, the Collaborative Environmental Management (CEM) specification is designed to help airports and their operational partners cooperate with one another and work together to identify, develop and implement effective solutions to fulfill their sustainability objectives.
Brussels South Charleroi Airport in Belgium and Eurocontrol, along with Ryanair, TUI fly, Air Corsica, Skeyes, the Belgian aerospace company SABCA and the airport association for Belgium’s Wallonia SOWAER, have signed a collaborative environmental agreement. The agreement is to collaboratively reduce the environmental impact of airport operations. The three top priorities of the partnership are to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, reduce noise pollution and improve air quality around the airport.
As part of the CEM, the partners involved have created an environmental committee that will focus on making the airports carbon neutral by 2050. The midpoint target is to reduce the airports’ CO2 emissions by 35% compared to 2019 by 2030. The other main objectives of this working agreement include identifying the challenges as well as the short- and long-term issues for Brussels South Charleroi Airport. Another is developing a shared environmental strategy and action plans to minimize environmental impacts (noise, air quality, greenhouse gas emissions).
Similarly, the partnership will work to define performance indicators designed to analyze the fulfillment of the environmental objectives established between the different stakeholders; and to promote a better understanding of the interdependence between the airport, the airlines and the air navigation service providers as a whole by facilitating the exchange of knowledge and expertise between the different stakeholders involved in CEM. Additionally, the partners will support environmental certification processes such as ISO 14001:2015 or BSCA’s involvement in the Airport Carbon Accreditation (ACA) scheme. Overall, the agreement centers on supporting the airport’s growth while reducing its impact on the environment.
Philippe Merlo, director of the Directorate European Civil-Military Aviation (DECMA) division at Eurocontrol, said, “In 2009 when our CEM specifications were published, environmental pressures were not what they are today. Over the years, CEM has developed to help airports and their partners tackle the challenges of the European Green Deal. The third edition of our specifications will be published very soon, taking into account new challenges such as the use of sustainable fuels. Today, the implementation of CEM at BSCA confirms the strength of this tool, and we are pleased to be able to contribute to the sustainable development of this airport.”
Marylin Bastin, the head of sustainability at Eurocontrol, said, “We are delighted about this new cooperation and are ready to support all the partners involved in their efforts to reduce the environmental impact through CEM.”