Transport Committee on Oct. 30th, 2018

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

That brings us to the conclusion of our first hour of witnesses.

Thank you very much for coming. We may have additional questions and may need to have you back before we finish this study.

We will suspend for a moment while our next panel comes to the table.

I call the meeting back to order.

From the Calgary Airport Authority, we have Mr. Sartor, president, and Carmelle Hunka, general counsel and senior director, risk and compliance. Thank you so much for being here.

From the Vancouver Airport Authority, we have, by video conference, Anne Murray, vice-president, airline business development and public affairs; and Mark Cheng, supervisor, noise and air quality.

From Aéroports de Montréal, we have Martin Massé and Anne Marcotte.

Welcome to all of you.

I would like to start with Aéroports de Montréal.

Mr. Massé, go ahead.

[Martin Massé, Vice-President, Public Affairs, Aéroports de Montréal]

Good morning, Madam Chair and committee members.

Thank you for this opportunity to describe the actions we've taken on soundscape management, and to answer your questions as part of efforts to assess the impact of aircraft noise in the vicinity of Canada's major airports.

Under the terms of its lease with Transport Canada, Aéroports de Montréal, or ADM, is responsible for managing and operating Montréal-Trudeau airport and the Mirabel Aeronautics and Industrial Park.

Over the years, Montréal-Trudeau has grown into an aviation hub and the third-largest airport in Canada. The airport serves 151 destinations and is home to 37 air carriers. As a result, it's the most international Canadian airport, since 41% of its passengers travel outside Canada and the United States. Montréal-Trudeau plays a significant role in the economic development of the greater Montreal area, with almost 29,000 direct jobs and some 200 companies on its site.

Soundscape management is and always has been a priority for Aéroports de Montréal. ADM's role is to ensure balance between the airport's growth as a key player in the development of the greater Montreal area and continued harmonious coexistence with its community. This is an integral part of our mission, and we're making sustained efforts to maintain that balance.

We develop our plans by incorporating the principles of the ICAO's balanced approach. We also work with our partners to mitigate the impacts on neighbouring communities of the activities involved in operating an international airport. These partners are the following.

Transport Canada is the regulatory body tasked with ensuring enforcement of the acoustical usage criteria and noise-abatement measures. Transport Canada is empowered to sanction pilots and carriers that violate those rules.

NAV CANADA is responsible for providing air navigation services, which means air traffic control.

Lastly, the airlines are required to fly their aircraft according to the operating hours in effect and comply with the flight procedures at Montréal-Trudeau. They’re also responsible for their aircraft fleets.

As the airport authority, Aéroports de Montréal is responsible for developing a soundscape management plan, setting up a soundscape management advisory committee, and handling complaints regarding noise.

To that end, Aéroports de Montréal put forward a preferential runway system for night-time operations. It ensures compliance with the operating hours in effect at Montréal-Trudeau and performs thorough follow-ups on requests for exemptions.

During the past 15 years, despite significant increases in passenger numbers, the total number of aircraft movements has remained relatively stable. It would therefore be wrong to conclude that Montréal-Trudeau's growth necessarily means an equivalent or proportional increase in the number of movements.

Aircraft today are larger, carry more passengers, and are less noisy. Technical and technological improvements have resulted in major noise reduction over the past decade.

To measure noise levels, Aéroports de Montréal has eight noise-measurement stations, including one mobile unit. ADM publishes the equivalent continuous sound levels, or the L_eq, recorded by the various noise-measurement stations located around the airport.

These stations are positioned strategically along the runway centrelines. The equipment is installed and calibrated by independent professionals. The system is linked to NAV CANADA radar data, which ensures that the noises recorded are correlated to aircraft movements.

Night flights are a significant concern for our soundscape management program. Managing flight schedules is a complex exercise for air carriers. On the one hand, the passenger community wants access to a variety of destinations at the best possible cost, and on the other hand, reducing the number of night flights is a crucial requirement.

ln addition to studying all requests for exemptions, ADM enforces the flight schedule restrictions in effect at Montréal-Trudeau. ADM meets regularly with air carriers that have operated flights outside its normal operating hours to demand that they implement action plans to remedy these situations.

Montréal-Trudeau airport is open 24 hours a day to aircraft weighing less than 45,000 kilograms. These are mainly propeller-driven aircraft and CRJ-type planes.

Heavier aircraft are subject to restricted operating hours. Jet aircraft weighing more than 45,000 kilograms must land between 7 a.m. and 1 a.m. and take off between 7 a.m. and midnight. ADM may grant exemptions as stipulated in the Canada Air Pilot.

Lastly, in co-operation with its soundscape management advisory committee, Aéroports de Montréal is continuing to develop further noise-abatement measures to benefit the Montreal community. To that end, an important action plan will be presented shortly to the committee members.

The plan comprises 26 actions in seven categories. These categories are restrictions on night flights; the use of quieter aircraft; noise-abatement procedures at takeoff and landing; the publication of reports and indicators that are more meaningful to the communities; the update of the complaints management policy; land-use planning; and the involvement of neighbouring communities.

Our objective is to reduce the impact of the activities related to airport operations; to provide incentives for air carriers to use the quietest possible aircraft; and to reduce the number of flights taking place during restricted operating hours.

Residents of large cities are exposed to different types of noise from a variety of sources, such as road networks, vehicles, railways and air traffic. It’s therefore important that these sources be properly identified.

ln that context, regarding the land-use planning category, I want to reiterate that ADM endorses the recommendation by Montreal’s public health directorate to enforce action 18.1 of the City of Montreal’s urban plan. This plan calls for the establishment of a coordinating committee with the Ministère des Transports du Québec and the various organizations and firms involved in freight transportation, including CP and CN, the Montreal Port Authority and Aéroports de Montréal, in order to limit noise pollution in residential areas. On multiple occasions, we’ve invited the City of Montreal to establish this type of committee, while pledging our collaboration.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Thank you very much, Mr. Massé.

Mr. Sartor, go ahead.

[Bob Sartor, President, Calgary Airport Authority]

Good morning, Madam Chair and members of the committee.

Thank you for inviting me here today to present the perspective of the Calgary Airport Authority.

First, I'd like to emphasize that YYC noise management is a priority, as the city now surrounds its major airport.

Airports around the world share similar challenges when it comes to air traffic noise. Airports are the hub for aircraft arrivals and departures, but those aircraft are owned and operated by the air carriers of the world, and the arrivals and departures are directed by Nav Canada. This is important context for our discussions today and for the study you are conducting.

Today I'd like to walk you through three important considerations from the perspective of the Calgary Airport Authority: our economic contributions to the city of Calgary; information about our operations, their impact on our local communities and our approach to noise management; and lastly, some real perspective on the noise calls received from our communities.

I hope to demonstrate how the authority continuously monitors performance to balance airport operations with community concerns, especially during periods of growth, as we are experiencing today.

First, I think it is critical for the committee to understand that the international airports represented here today are economic and employment powerhouses in our respective cities. In Calgary, YYC contributes approximately $8 billion to the city's GDP annually, and 24,000 Calgarians are employed directly at the YYC campus. Nearly 50,000 jobs are created and maintained by our operations, and our airport has continued to grow through the tough economic times in Alberta in recent years, with 3.8% growth in passenger volumes in 2017 and a 7% growth rate to date in 2018. I also have to stress that the growth in demand by our cargo carriers is critical to economic viability and to the city of Calgary. We saw a 7.7% increase in cargo volumes last year alone.

The economic driver that airports are to our cities must be a major consideration as you undertake a review of the impact of aircraft noise. With the number of passengers increasing, we have actually seen a reduction in the total number of aircraft movements from 2016 to 2017 due to upgauging of aircraft. Our average daily movements have dropped from 636 to 615.

In 2017, over 95% of flights at YYC occurred between the hours of 6 a.m. and midnight. This means that less than 5%, or on average only 29 of a total of 615 flights per day, are arriving and departing at YYC between the hours of midnight and 6 a.m.

While airports share similar challenges, it is also important to understand that each airport must address its local concerns, and those concerns may be unique to that airport or to that community.

At YYC, we have an active noise monitoring program; in fact, we have 16 noise monitoring stations throughout the city. We have significant community engagement through consultative committee meetings and ad hoc community open houses. We conduct active investigation of noise concerns. We regularly report information regarding activities at the Calgary airport that impact noise, such as runway closures or construction that results in changed traffic patterns. Finally, we collaborate with Nav Canada and the major air carriers to discuss innovations and industry-leading practices in aircraft noise management at airports.

At the Calgary airport, we have the support of the city and the province in noise management through a commitment to the Calgary International Airport vicinity protection area regulation, a provincial regulation known as the AVPA. The AVPA regulates the development of urban areas in Calgary, as well as Edmonton, based on the noise contours for our city arising from air traffic. The development of the urban landscape of Calgary has largely followed the noise contours, keeping residential developments removed from the highest noise contours.

The third item I would like to discuss is the calls we receive at the airport regarding noise. At YYC, we have continued to receive calls regarding noise and the frequency of air traffic since the opening of our new runway in 2014. We received over 5,700 calls in 2017, a reduction of 11% from 2016. However, what is very important to understand is that a large volume of the calls come from a small group of people. At YYC, five callers made 72% of all the calls received in 2017. That is 4,100 calls from five individuals. Two individuals called over 2,700 times, which is 48% of the calls received. In a city of 1.2 million people, we received calls from less than 3% of the population, or about 400 households.

Restricting air traffic at one airport, as we've seen in Europe, does only one thing: It moves the air traffic to another airport. The demand will remain, and the demand will be serviced somehow.

We cannot remove the noise, but we have to take a balanced approach to managing noise, between the needs of the public—who demand more choices in travel destinations and who are increasingly ordering deliveries online—and the residents of the communities over which aircraft fly, as well as the significant role airports play in the economic development of our cities.

I'm happy to answer any questions. Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

We'll go on to Ms. Murray, vice-president of airline business development at Vancouver airport, by video conference.

Welcome to you and Mr. Cheng.

[Anne Murray, Vice-President, Airline Business Development and Public Affairs, Vancouver Airport Authority]

Good morning, Madam Chair, and thank you for the opportunity to speak to the committee today.

Large Canadian airports are managed by local, not-for-profit organizations. Under this unique model, we receive no government funding and are not beholden to shareholders. We reinvest all profits back into our airports.

At YVR, Vancouver International Airport, this model is underpinned by our commitment to our neighbouring communities. This includes managing airport noise to balance the need for safe, convenient 24-hour air travel with enjoyable urban living.

It's our mandate to provide economic and social benefits to the people of British Columbia and operate the airport in the best interest of the region, while keeping safety as our first priority.

YVR is a key economic generator for the region. We facilitate $16.5 billion in total economic output and $8.5 billion in total GDP. Last year, we welcomed more than 24 million passengers. We are also home to 24,000 jobs at the airport.

Vancouver Airport Authority's ground lease with the federal government requires us to manage noise associated with airport operations within 10 nautical miles of the airport. We do so through a comprehensive noise management program, which has a number of core elements: a five-year noise management plan, stakeholder engagement, maintaining noise abatement procedures, noise monitoring and flight tracking, and providing information to answer community questions and concerns.

We're currently updating the five-year noise management plan, and that will go to Transport Canada by year-end. To do so, we engaged residents and stakeholders for their input to customize initiatives for our region. While the core elements are common, each solution must cater to individual airports' unique and local issues and conditions.

As you realize, aircraft noise can be quite technical, but really there are three main ways of addressing it: the aircraft itself; when, where and how the aircraft flies; and the residents, where they live and the environment in which they live.

Looking at the aircraft itself is about reducing noise at the source. Aircraft noise and emissions certification standards are set by ICAO, and the aircraft must meet these standards to operate in Canada.

Over the years, the airlines have invested hundreds of millions of dollars in upgrading their fleets. These aircraft are cleaner and quieter, producing less noise and less emissions.

Secondly, we look at the operating procedures and noise control procedures. This is the part that relates to where and how the airplanes fly. Airports have noise abatement procedures that include night restrictions and preferential runway use. Nav Canada manages the airspace and has procedures to minimize flights over populated areas. The airlines train their crews to fly community-friendly.

The third area we can focus on is the receiver, the person, where they live and what they expect. We work with local cities to manage, through land use planning, the number of people living in high-noise areas. YVR supports the Transport Canada guidelines that discourage non-compatible land use in areas close to airports.

How are we doing? In 1998, we had 369,000 aircraft landings and takeoffs and welcomed 15.5 million passengers. Last year, we had 39,000 fewer aircraft landings and takeoffs and almost 9 million more passengers. To put that in perspective, that's 50% more passengers and 10% less aircraft movement compared to 20 years ago, and all of those operations are with quieter aircraft.

As for noise complaints, in 2017 we received 1,293 noise concerns from 253 people. Four individuals were responsible for 64% of our complaints, two of whom live more than 23 kilometres from the airport. For comparison, the greater Vancouver region has about 2.8 million people.

With respect to night operations, 3% of our total annual runway movements occur between midnight and 6 a.m., an average of 27 operations per night in 2017. These flights are a mix of passenger and courier services. To manage the noise from the night operations, we have procedures and restrictions in place, including an approval process for jet aircraft departures, the closure of our north runway between specified hours, and preferential runway use to keep aircraft landings and takeoffs over the water, where possible.

Our survey results show that we have the community support to grow our air services so long as we continue to manage aircraft noise. We have been successful in doing so within the strong federal framework in place and the flexibility to apply local solutions.

Thank you for the opportunity to share why we are successful today.

We would be happy to answer any questions.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Mr. Liepert, you have five minutes, please.

[Ron Liepert, Conservative, Calgary Signal Hill, AB]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Mr. Massé, we've had various conflicting testimony where it's been suggested that a lot of the cargo traffic could be moved to other airports. The example that's most often given is Hamilton instead of Pearson in Toronto.

We also, however, had testimony from the Mississauga chamber of commerce or a business group that suggested that the Montreal situation with Trudeau and Mirabel is a classic example of why you can't make that happen. The cargo needs to come into the busy airport.

Can you tell us whether it has been successful or not? Who is right in this debate?

[Martin Massé]

Thank you for your question.

I don't think that I can determine who's right in the debate. One thing is certain, at Aéroports de Montréal, most of the transportation of large cargo is handled at Mirabel airport, and the transportation of small cargo is handled at Montréal-Trudeau.

Is this the right decision? As fate would have it, we have two airports to manage. Would cargo companies like to be closer to downtown? This is likely the case, but for management reasons, we prefer to keep the transportation of large volumes of cargo at Mirabel.

You know that, now, in the direct passenger service business model, the option of carrying cargo in the aircraft hold is an integral part of the business case. This obviously goes through Montréal-Trudeau.

[Ron Liepert, Conservative, Calgary Signal Hill, AB]

Okay.

Mr. Sartor, as you are well aware, I represent a part of Calgary that is a long way from the airport, yet we are now getting complaints about aircraft noise, planes that are 3,000 feet off the ground.

I asked Nav Canada this question, so I'll ask you folks as well. Can you explain to my constituents why this is happening today? Are there alternatives? As I said to Nav Canada, it seems to me that this parallel approach they're now using over Sarcee Trail could just as easily be another mile or two to the west, where there's nothing but cattle to disturb, but that causes another problem, I guess.

Could you explain to me why that's not an option, and why my constituents are facing noise half an hour away from the airport?

[Bob Sartor]

Obviously, I will be speaking to your constituents in a couple of weeks at a consultative committee meeting.

We have absolutely no say on where Nav Canada puts the planes.

At that distance, 3,000 feet is highly unlikely. They're well over 3,000 feet when they come over Inglewood sometimes. I think the altitude might be a little higher.

Having said that, noise still disturbs people, and people have different sensitivities to noise. I think we see that in the statistics we collect from Calgarians. Some feel they need to complain three times a day, and some perhaps once a year if something has been amiss.

[Ron Liepert, Conservative, Calgary Signal Hill, AB]

I'm going to stop you, because I have only a minute left.

You are the operator of the airport relative to what's coming and going out of the airport. I have been told that some of these noisy aircraft at night are foreign aircraft, Russian or whatever, and it seems to me that the previous panel didn't seem to give any indication that there's any ability to control that situation, if that's correct.

[Bob Sartor]

We have significant cargo operations at Calgary airport. Some of the major freighter carriers have new jets that are quieter, but many of the cargo planes are previous-generation jets. They will be older 767s, some 777s, which are noisier than, say, the 787. Effectively, you have passenger jets and when that generation of jets is done, some of those jets are reconditioned and repurposed as cargo, so they are louder planes.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Thank you.

Mr. Iacono, go ahead.

[Angelo Iacono, Liberal, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

I thank the witnesses for being here this morning. My first question is for Mr. Massé from ADM.

Mr. Massé, you spoke about an advisory committee. What is its purpose?

[Martin Massé]

The airport soundscape advisory committee meets four times a year. It is made up of municipal and borough councillors, representatives from NAV CANADA and Transport Canada, and our own public affairs, operations, and sustainable development managers. The air carriers also sit on this committee, and that is very important. After all, they are the ones who put the planes in the air.

This committee allows us to pool all of our statistics and discuss specific issues that affect certain regions. It will also soon allow us to test—at our next meeting—certain ideas in connection with our airport soundscape management action plan. Through this we are in a better position to align our data with the wishes expressed by the members of the committee regarding various sectors of activity.

[Angelo Iacono, Liberal, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Are the results of that committee's work shared with Transport Canada?

[Martin Massé]

Transport Canada sits on the committee.

[Angelo Iacono, Liberal, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Perfect.

The word “advisory” makes me think that this committee could just be window-dressing. Why do you not make it permanent? You say it only meets four times a year. Why don't you hold more meetings? Noise is constant, not occasional. The population concerned might think that meeting four times a year is not very serious. What do you think of that?

[Martin Massé]

First, the committee meets four times a year at a minimum. Secondly, I don't think the frequency of meetings should be taken as an indication of how serious the committee is or is not. We are very pleased to be here. I don't think you will call us again next week, but that does not cast doubt on the seriousness of your work.

The existence of the committee is assured since it has existed since 1992. All of the members keep in touch, and the committee publishes a summary of its work on the Internet. I think that if we were to meet more frequently, we would not be able to test the ideas discussed by the committee.

[Angelo Iacono, Liberal, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

I have a question for you. Based on the meetings you have held over all of those years, what changes have you made that had some positive noise-related impact on the population?

[Martin Massé]

As I said earlier, we will be able to submit an action plan to the committee by its next meeting. This plan will allow us to manage airport soundscapes even better, and to establish a more direct link with stakeholders and answer questions. Indeed, there are often a lot of urban myths surrounding the management of airport soundscapes. This plan will allow us to be present and accessible and to answer all of the questions, particularly those of elected representatives, who speak out loudly and clearly. This will also allow us to remind everyone that we would like to see the City of Montreal—the greater Montreal area—set up a committee on urban noise, because after all, airplanes are not the only thing that make noise in large cities.

[Angelo Iacono, Liberal, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Thank you.

In its document entitled “Soundscape Statistics—Year 2017”, ADM lists 543 noise-related complaints. We just learned that in Calgary there were over 5,000 complaints. Could you describe the ADM complaint handling process?

[Anne Marcotte, Director, Public Relations, Aéroports de Montréal]

With your permission, I will answer the question.

Currently, for each person who submits a complaint, we register one complaint per 24-hour period. That is why, in 2017, we received 543 complaints from 277 persons. In the course of our current review of the airport soundscape management plan, we will change that methodology.

[Angelo Iacono, Liberal, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Perfect.

Thank you.