Decarbonising Europe’s airports from the ground up
Air transport is a major enabler of economic growth and societal connectivity. Yet against the backdrop of the European Green Deal(opens in new window), aviation must move towards sustainability and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The entire aviation sector, from airlines to ground handlers and support services, faces the challenge of environmental transition. Through the EUR 34 million OLGA(opens in new window) project, a consortium of European airports is developing and trialling a series of innovations to reduce the sector’s environmental impact. These include initiatives both within and outside the terminal, aimed at reducing CO2 emissions, preserving biodiversity, improving air quality and waste management, and boosting energy efficiency. The project is coordinated by Aéroports de Paris (ADP), with Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport as the core innovation hub, alongside partner activities taking place at Milan-Malpensa in Italy, Zagreb in Croatia and Cluj in Romania. In total, OLGA involves 43 partners, across four airports, and has produced over 40 sustainable and innovative solutions(opens in new window).
Commitments to improve environmental impacts
The project is committed to delivering environmental efficiency actions in three key areas(opens in new window): flight operations, passenger and cargo transport, and community and territories. For flight operations, this includes the reduction in aviation’s CO2 emissions through the complete and traceable availability of sustainable aviation fuel for airlines, and demonstrating the potential of airports to be ‘hydrogen hubs’, through hydrogen fuel infrastructure for ground vehicles and aircrafts. To reduce the direct environmental footprint of the airport itself, OLGA supports developments for passengers, staff and freight. This includes promoting recycling in and outside the terminal, increasing renewable energy use in terminals and creating more biodiversity-friendly taxiways. The project also aims to improve air quality at airports through real-time monitoring.
Sustainable action in and outside of the terminal
Greener lighting installed at the train station at Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport aims to improve energy efficiency, and increase the use of bioplastics and recycled materials, while improving the passenger experience through architectural aesthetics and simplifying maintenance. Solar panels were also installed in unused spaces, including the roofing of passenger boarding bridges. This solution generates clean electricity to supply aircraft and reduce dependence on fossil fuels. A semi-robotic towing vehicle known as TaxiBot has also been trialled, moving aircraft from the boarding gate to the designated runway area, reducing the use of aircraft engine power. This engine-off taxiing of aircraft aims to revolutionise ground operations and could bring both environmental and economic benefits by reducing aircraft engine operating time and fuel use. OLGA has also developed BiodiversIT, a state-of-the-art system which adopts AI algorithms, advanced field sensors and data analytics to monitor biodiversity at airports. This enables not only monitoring of desirable, high-stakes species, but also keeping track of invasive species to ensure balanced biodiversity. An added experiment focuses on plant species that attract certain birds that can maintain aeronautical safety around airports. “These innovations target mobility, operations, energy, air quality and ecosystems, showing that airports can be active players of environmental transition across multiple domains,” says Yannael Billard, sustainable development director at Groupe ADP.
Spreading the word about green initiatives
OLGA has produced a range of publications, some of which have been presented at conferences, and all of which are available online(opens in new window). Achievements have also been publicised at prestigious events such as the Paris Air Show and the Passenger Terminal Expo. OLGA has also hosted several in-house events to strengthen cooperation in green initiatives across the European aviation community and develop successful proofs-of-concept. OLGA was also selected for the Science4EU(opens in new window) campaign, showcasing impactful EU research and innovation. Overall, the many concepts trialled in the project will aim to reduce Europe’s carbon footprint and deliver greener airports for the future.
