DIA is the first international airport in the United States to register its Environmental Management System to the ISO 14001
international standard. Credit: Denver International Airport.

Denver International Airport

Denver International Airport was the 11th-busiest airport in the world in 2005. With an average of 118,870 passengers routed through the airport each day on 1,555 commercial flights, DIA depends on efficient operations to remain successful and competitive.

A key component of the airport’s facility management is its Environmental Management System, which is a tool that DIA uses to manage environmental issues and increase its operating efficiency. The EMS outlines a series of guidelines, procedures and processes that address environmental impacts in day-to-day business activities.

Planning: Key to Building an Environmental Policy

One of the most critical and beneficial components of the airport’s EMS is the planning process. Annual environmental objectives are developed concurrently with the airport’s budget to ensure that the plan has the resources necessary for successful completion. Targets are approved by senior management and tracked by DIA’s Environmental Services staff, and the results are reported to all airport staff.

During the target-setting process, the following items are considered:

• Legal and regulatory requirements
• Significant environmental aspects
• Technological options
• Financial, operational, and business requirements
• Pollution prevention studies and goals
• Colorado Department of Public Health and Environmental Leadership Program commitments
• The city’s five goals
• DIA’s performance contract with the Mayor of Denver
• Views of interested parties

This process enables airport management to assess environmental performance, review compliance schedule milestones, evaluate fundingavailability for completion of specific projects or implementation of new programs, and review progress.

Additionally, regular outreach and education sessions are conducted for new and existing employees, vendors and contractors to continue to raise overall environmental awareness throughout the organization.

Environmental Successes

The well-defined EMS and organizational commitment to its specifications has enabled Denver International Airport to reach several environmental accomplishments, including:

• Since May 2001, DIA has received no notices, violations, or financial penalties from state or federal regulatory agencies.
• DIA maintains 317 alternatively-powered vehicles, including 208 buses, sweepers and other vehicles using compressed natural gas, and 109 electric- and hybrid-electric vehicles. Alternative vehicles now make up 30 percent of the airport’s fleet.
• The airport includes environmental requirements such as prohibited chemicals, regulatory requirements, and waste management procedures in its purchasing and services contracts.
• DIA’s Fleet Maintenance recently switched to DOW 1000 brake fluid, which is a mixture of glycols and ethers. The airport previously paid for the disposal of used brake fluid, but now it is placed into a tank for recycling at no cost.
• DIA recycles deicing fluid. In 2004/2005, DIA reclaimed 69 percent of the applied fluid, recycled 60 percent of the fraction collected, and recycled 42 percent of the applied. A new operational contract for this process resulted in an annual cost savings to
  the airlines of approximately $500,000 for the deicing season.
• In 2005, DIA recycled 508.26 tons of cardboard, newspaper, aluminum, and other recyclables which brought in $7,371.64 of revenue and saved $19,679.83 in diversion costs for a total net savings of $27,051.40.

International Certification

DIA is the first international airport in the United States to register its EMS to the ISO 14001 international standard. DIA received its ISO 14001 certification in 2004, around the same time that ISO developed more rigorous requirements, including a heightened EMS awareness by those entities that provide products, goods, and services on behalf of the airport. In response, DIA upgraded its EMS to meet the revised ISO standard and successfully demonstrated its conformity during its semiannual independent audit in November 2005.

IN-DEPTH:

• Read more about DIA’s environmental policy
  Listen to a podcast about protecting the environment on the DIA website.