“The Earth is a fine place and worth fighting for.” - Ernest Hemingway 

April 22 marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. What is normally a global day of action bringing a billion people together to change human behavior and evoke local, national and worldwide environmental policy changes, has a different feel this year due to physical distancing. The Division of Aviation’s Capital Development team virtually gathered to discuss the ways Philadelphia International Airport and Northeast Philadelphia Airport are making a difference for people and the planet.

PHL and PNE are making a difference by:

• Adopting sustainable construction practices to reduce environmental impact
• Preparing for climate change and developing strategies to mitigate and adapt our airports
• Rescuing food from airport restaurants to donate to Philabundance
• Diverting waste from landfills  Replacing and upgrading our preconditioned air units and ground power units at aircraft gates to reduce the use of aircraft engines and fuel
• Reducing the carbon footprint by using Compressed Natural Gas in employee and economy lot shuttle buses
• Upgrading heating and cooling systems through all the terminals.
• Renovating restrooms with water saving fixtures and toilets
• Using new noise monitoring software to identify and respond to noise complaints in a timely fashion