SIXTH MEETING OF THE ICAO COMMITTEE ON AVIATION

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 11 MONTREAL 000308 SIPDIS FROM USMISSION ICAO DEPARTMENT FOR EB/TRA/AVP, IO/T, OES/EGC FAA FOR AIA 100, APO-1, AEE-1 E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAIR SENV ETRD ICAO SUBJECT: SIXTH MEETING OF THE ICAO COMMITTEE ON AVIATION ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION:OUTCOME ¶1. SUMMARY: THE U.S. WAS SUCCESSFUL IN ACHIEVING MOST OF ITS GOALS AT THE SIXTH MEETING OF THE INTERNATIONAL CIVIL AVIATION ORGANIZATION'S (ICAO) COMMITTEE ON AVIATION ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (CAEP),HELD IN MONTREAL, FEBRUARY 2-12, 2004. THE MOST SIGNIFICANT RESULT RELATED TO AIRCRAFT NOISE WAS ADOPTION OF ICAO GUIDANCE MATERIAL ON THE BALANCED APPROACH TO AIRCRAFT NOISE MANAGEMENT. ON THE EMISSIONS ISSUES, THE COMMITTEE ADOPTED A SIGNIFICANT NEW NOX STRINGENCY STANDARD THAT IS A 12% REDUCTION OVER THE CURRENT STANDARD. THE NEW STANDARD WILL BE EFFECTIVE FOR NEW PRODUCTION ENGINES IN 2008. THE COMMITTEE ALSO AGREED TO PURSUE THE USE OF VOLUNTARY MEASURES TO REDUCE CO2 EMISSIONS AND TO FURTHER STUDY CO2 EMISSIONS TRADING OPTIONS. HOWEVER, AS EXPECTED, THE MEETING FAILED TO REACH AGREEMENT ON WHETHER OR NOT EXISTING ICAO GUIDANCE ON CHARGES SUPPORTS THE APPLICATION OF CO2 EMISSIONS CHARGES. END SUMMARY. ¶2. THE SIXTH MEETING OF THE INTERNATIONAL CIVIL AVIATION ORGANIZATION'S (ICAO) COMMITTEE ON AVIATION ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (CAEP) CONVENED IN MONTREAL ON MONDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2004. APPROXIMATELY 185 PARTICIPANTS REPRESENTING ALL 19 CAEP MEMBER STATES AND 11 OBSERVER ORGANIZATIONS WERE IN ATTENDANCE. THE MEETING CONCLUDED ON THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12. -------------- U.S. DELEGATION -------------- ¶3. MR. CARL BURLESON, THE DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY AT THE FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION (FAA) HEADED THE UNITED STATES DELEGATION AS THE U.S. REPRESENTATIVE TO CAEP. ALSO ON THE DELEGATION, SUPPORTING MR. BURLESON FROM THE FAA WERE MR. GARY O'TOOLE, MR. ARCHIE MUCKLE, DR. LOURDES MAURICE, MR. TOM CONNOR, AND MR. CURTIS HOLSCLAW. MR. STEVE SEIDEL AND MR. BRYAN MANNING FROM THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, MR. CHRISTO ARTUSIO FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE, AND MR. JON MONTGOMERY FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE ALSO SUPPORTED MR. BURLESON ON THE DELEGATION. ¶4. ALTHOUGH NOT ON THE OFFICIAL U.S. DELEGATION, CERTAIN U.S. STAKEHOLDERS WERE IN ATTENDANCE AS MEMBERS ON VARIOUS INTERNATIONAL OBSERVER ORGANIZATIONS AND WERE CONSULTED THROUGHOUT THE TWO WEEKS IN MONTREAL. THESE ADVISORS REPRESENTED THE AIR TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION (ATA),ASSOCIATION OF AEROSPACE INDUSTRIES (AIA),GENERAL AVIATION MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION (GAMA),AND THE CENTER FOR CLEAN AIR POLICY (CCAP). ALSO DURING THE COURSE OF THE MEETING, THE HEAD OF THE U.S. DELEGATION CONDUCTED FOUR TELECONS WITH GOVERNMENT AND INDUSTRY TO APPRISE INTERESTED PARTIES ON THE PROGRESS OF THE MEETING. -------------- KOTAITE OPENS MEETING -------------- ¶5. DR. ASSAD KOTAITE, PRESIDENT OF THE ICAO COUNCIL, OPENED THE MEETING BY REMINDING THE MEMBERS THAT GLOBAL COOPERATION HAS BEEN EFFECTIVE IN REDUCING THE IMPACT OF AVIATION ON THE ENVIRONMENT. AIRCRAFT TODAY ARE MUCH QUIETER AND LESS POLLUTING THEN THEIR COUNTERPARTS OF A FEW DECADES AGO DUE TO THE CLOSE COOPERATION AMONG MANUFACTURERS, OPERATORS, AND REGULATORS. HE NOTED THAT CAEP/5 HAD SUCCESSFULLY ADDRESSED VERY DIFFICULT ISSUES SUCH AS A NEW NOISE STANDARD, THE BALANCED APPROACH TO NOISE MANAGEMENT, AND A WAY FORWARD TO LIMIT OR REDUCE GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS. ¶6. DR. KOTAITE CONTINUED BY NOTING THAT CAEP/6 TAKES PLACE AT A TIME WHEN THE AVIATION COMMUNITY IS JUST BEGINNING TO RECOVER FROM THE DEVASTATING EFFECTS OF 11 SEPTEMBER 2001. HE THEN DISCUSSED ICAO'S ELEVATION OF AVIATION ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS WITHIN THE ORGANIZATION BY THE CREATION OF AN ENVIRONMENTAL UNIT WITHIN THE SECRETARIAT. HE CONCLUDED BY REMINDING THE MEETING OF ITS RESPONSIBILITY TO ICAO'S 188 MEMBER STATES REGARDING THE ENVIRONMENT - ONE OF THE THREE MOST IMPORTANT AREAS DEALT WITH BY ICAO TOGETHER WITH SAFETY AND SECURITY. ¶7. MR. GRAHAM PENDLEBURY, THE CAEP MEMBER FROM THE UNITED KINGDOM, WAS CHOSEN BY CONSENSUS AS CHAIR FOR THE MEETING. MR. S. TAKANO, THE CAEP MEMBER FROM JAPAN, WAS SELECTED AS THE DEPUTY CHAIR, ALSO BY CONSENSUS. THE U.S. MEMBER SUPPORTED BOTH SELECTIONS. -------------- AIRCRAFT ENGINE EMISSIONS -------------- ¶8. NEW NOX STRINGENCY STANDARD. ¶A. THE NOX STANDARD DISCUSSION FOCUSED ON THE CAEP ANALYSIS THAT WAS DONE ON SEVERAL SCENARIOS - A 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25% AND 30% REDUCTIONS (FROM THE CAEP/4 STANDARD) IMPLEMENTED IN EITHER 2008 OR 2012. THE PRESENTATIONS FOCUSED ON THE WORKING ASSUMPTIONS, AND THE RESULTS THAT SHOWED THAT 10% WAS THE MOST COST-EFFECTIVE SOLUTION WHEREAS HIGHER LEVELS DROVE COSTS SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER WITH SMALL VERY SMALL GAINS IN NOX REDUCTIONS. . AT 15% THERE APPEARED TO BE A BREAK POINT WHERE GREATER TECHNOLOGY CHALLENGES SEEM TO GREATLY ESCALATE COSTS. THE STUDY ALSO SHOWED THAT A LOWER STRINGENCY LEVEL (10%) IMPLEMENTED IN 2008 WOULD HAVE ALMOST THE SAME EFFECT AS A HIGHER LEVEL (15%) IN 2012. ¶B. A NUMBER OF PAPERS WERE SUBMITTED ON THE NOX STRINGENCY ISSUE. FIVE EUROPEAN STATES - THE UK, GERMANY, SWEDEN, SWITZERLAND, AND NORWAY - SUBMITTED A PAPER CALLING FOR A 20% INCREASE. ACI PRESENTED A PAPER THAT CALLED FOR A 20% REDUCTION IN 2008 AND A 30% REDUCTION IN 2012, AND ICSA REPRESENTING ENVIRONMENTAL NGOS CALLED FOR 30% IN 2012. THE DEVELOPING WORLD SEEMED TO BE IN THE 5% TO 10% RANGE. THE UK ALSO PRESENTED A PAPER THAT QUESTIONED THE CAEP ANALYSIS SUGGESTING THAT THE COSTS OF SOME OF THE HIGHER OPTIONS WERE OVERESTIMATED AND BENEFITS UNDERESTIMATED. ¶C. AFTER LONG NEGOTIATIONS IN A MEMBERS-ONLY MEETING, IT WAS AGREED THAT THE NEW NOX STANDARD WOULD BE A 12% REDUCTION EFFECTIVE IN 2008. THIS IS A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION - AT LEAST TWICE AS STRINGENT AS PAST CAEP NOX STRINGENCY INCREASES. ALSO, THE MEETING AGREED TO REVISIT THE NOX STANDARD AT CAEP/8 (2010) WITH A COMMITMENT TO REVIEW LONG TERM GOALS, DEVELOP BETTER MODELING, GATHER BETTER TECHNICAL AND SCIENTIFIC DATA, AND LOOK AT INTERDEPENDENCIES DURING THE INTERVENING 6 YEARS. ¶9. PRODUCTION CUT-OFF OF THE CAEP/4 NOX STANDARD. AN ISSUE RELATED TO AGREEMENT ON A NEW NOX STANDARD WAS WHETHER OR NOT THERE WOULD BE A PRODUCTION CUT-OFF OF THE CURRENT (CAEP/4) STANDARD. THIS ISSUE BECAME AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE NEGOTIATION ON THE NEW NOX STANDARD. ALTHOUGH THE U.S. POSITION SUPPORTED A PRODUCTION CUT-OFF, NEW INFORMATION WAS BROUGHT TO THE MEMBERS-ONLY MEETING THAT AT CAEP/4, THERE WAS AGREEMENT THAT THERE WOULD BE NO PRODUCTION CUT-OFF. THE CAEP SECRETARY CONFIRMED THIS INFORMATION AND THERE WAS A MAJORITY VIEW THAT THE CAEP/4 DECISION SHOULD STAND. REALIZING THAT THIS VIEW WAS CRITICAL TO ACHIEVING THE U.S. POSITION FOR NOX AT THIS MEETING (AS WELL AS THE UPCOMING DISCUSSION ON CHARGES),THE U.S. MEMBER RESPONDED BY INSISTING THAT PRODUCTION CUT-OFF WOULD BE REVIEWED IN THE TIME LEADING UP TO CAEP/8, AND THE NEED FOR, AND DETAILS OF A PRODUCTION CUT-OFF WOULD BE REVISITED AT CAEP/8. THE FINAL DECISION WAS THAT THERE WOULD BE NO PRODUCTION CUT-OFF FOR THE CAEP/4 STANDARD. HOWEVER, THIS ISSUE WOULD BE PUT ON THE FUTURE WORK PROGRAM. -------------- -------------- MARKET-BASED OPTIONS (TO REDUCE CO2 EMISSIONS) -------------- -------------- ¶10. VOLUNTARY MEASURES. THE MEMBERS WERE ASKED TO ADOPT A VOLUNTARY MEASURES TEMPLATE. THE TEMPLATE GIVES BASIC GUIDANCE AND STRUCTURE TO A POSSIBLE VOLUNTARY ARRANGEMENT TO REDUCE CO2 EMISSIONS. THE MEETING ACCEPTED THE TEMPLATE, AND AGREED THAT CAEP SHOULD EXPLORE HOW THIS TEMPLATE MIGHT BE USED AS THE BASIS FOR A REAL VOLUNTARY AGREEMENT, POSSIBLY BASED ON OPERATIONAL MEASURES, IN THE FUTURE WORK PROGRAM. ¶11. EMISSIONS (CO2) CHARGES. ¶A. THIS WAS THE MOST DIFFICULT ISSUE FOR THE MEETING, AND THE MEMBERS WERE UNABLE TO COME TO AGREEMENT OVER THE USE OF EMISSIONS CHARGES TO REDUCE CO2 - A GLOBAL GREENHOUSE GAS. THE DEBATE FOCUSED ON THE APPLICABILITY OF EXISTING ICAO GUIDANCE TO THESE CHARGES AND WHETHER THE GUIDANCE PROVIDED TO DATE WAS SUFFICIENT TO ANSWER A NUMBER OF LEGAL, POLICY, AND ECONOMIC QUESTIONS RAISED GIVEN THE NOVEL NATURE OF CO2 CHARGES. EXISTING ICAO GUIDANCE FOCUSES ON THE MITIGATION OF THE LOCAL IMPACT OF EMISSIONS AND NOISE, OR THE PROVISION OF SPECIFIC AVIATION SERVICES WHEREAS CO2 IS A GLOBAL EMISSION WITH NO LOCAL IMPACT OR HEALTH EFFECTS. THE EUROPEANS BELIEVE THAT EXISTING GUIDANCE IS SUFFICIENT TO GO AHEAD WITH CO2 CHARGES. THE U.S., AS WELL AS THE REST OF THE WORLD, OPPOSED CO2 CHARGES SUGGESTING THAT POSSIBLY SPECIFIC GUIDANCE COULD BE DEVELOPED IN THE FUTURE, BUT ONLY AFTER THE OPEN LEGAL AND ECONOMIC ISSUES WERE ADDRESSED. THERE WAS ALSO SENTIMENT BY SOME OF THE DEVELOPING WORLD THAT ANY CHARGING SCHEME EVENTUALLY DEVELOPED- WHETHER ON CO2 OR LOCAL AIR QUALITY ISSUES- SHOULD EXEMPT THEM.. ¶B. THE ICAO LEGAL BUREAU CONCLUDED IN A PAPER TO THE MEETING THAT EMISSIONS CHARGES ARE COMPATIBLE WITH THE CHICAGO CONVENTION BUT THEY MUST BE BASED ON THE COST OF MITIGATING ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE, THE COST MUST BE IDENTIFIABLE AND DIRECTLY ATTRIBUTABLE TO AVIATION, AND THAT THERE WERE OTHER REMAINING LEGAL ISSUES TO BE EXPLORED. THESE INCLUDED WHAT IS MEANT BY, AND HOW TO DETERMINE THE "FULL COST OF ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE," HOW TO IDENTIFY AND ESTABLISH CATEGORIES OF COSTS, THE GEOGRAPHICAL SCOPE OF APPLICATION, ETC. THE U.S. SUGGESTED THAT IT IS PREMATURE FOR ANY STATE TO IMPLEMENT CO2 CHARGES UNTIL THESE ISSUES CAN BE FURTHER STUDIED, AND THAT THESE ISSUES COULD BE TAKEN UP BY THE ICAO LEGAL COMMITTEE - A BODY OF MEMBER STATES. ¶C. THE MEETING COULD NOT AGREE ON RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE COUNCIL. INSTEAD, DIFFERING VIEWS WERE DOCUMENTED AND WILL BE FORWARDED AS A POLICY ISSUE TO THE ICAO COUNCIL, AND POSSIBLY THE 35TH ICAO ASSEMBLY AT THE END OF 2004. ¶12. EMISSIONS TRADING. ¶A. THE MEETING CONSIDERED THREE OPTIONS (OR "AVENUES") FOR CONSIDERATION IN FURTHER STUDY OF EMISSIONS TRADING. THE AVENUES WERE A TRADING SCHEME BASED ON 1) INTEGRATED TRADING UNDER THE KYOTO PROTOCOL, 2) A NEW LEGAL INSTRUMENT WITHIN ICAO, AND 3) A VOLUNTARY TRADING APPROACH. THERE APPEARED TO BE GENERAL SUPPORT FROM DIFFERENT MEMBER STATES FOR CONTINUING AVENUES 1 AND 3. MANY SAW AVENUE 3 AS A PRECURSOR TO AVENUE 1 WHILE THE U.S. ARGUED THAT A VOLUNTARY ARRANGEMENT COULD BE PURSUED ON ITS OWN MERIT - NOT NECESSARILY AS A LEAD IN TO A FUTURE MANDATORY ARRANGEMENT. THERE WAS NEARLY UNIVERSAL AGREEMENT ON THE ELIMINATION OF AVENUE 2 BASED ON THE DIFFICULTIES IN DEVELOPING A NEW ICAO LEGAL INSTRUMENT UNDER THE CHICAGO CONVENTION. ¶B. DURING THE DEBATE, THE ISSUE OF ALLOCATION OF INTERNATIONAL GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS CAME UP. SEVERAL STATES FROM EUROPE, AND CANADA AND BRAZIL SUGGESTED THAT THE ISSUE OF THE ALLOCATION OF GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS NEEDED TO BE RESOLVED FOR ICAO TO PURSUE THESE EMISSIONS TRADING AVENUES - ESPECIALLY AVENUE 1. ¶C. FINALLY, LANGUAGE WAS AGREED THAT RULED OUT AVENUE 2 FOR FURTHER CONSIDERATION, SUPPORTED FURTHER PURSUIT OF AVENUE 3, AND AGREED THAT WORK SHOULD CONTINUE ON AVENUE 1 TO PROVIDE GUIDANCE FOR STATES FOR TRADING SCHEMES CONSISTENT WITH THEIR OBLIGATIONS UNDER THE UNFCCC PROCESS (THE U.S. MANAGED TO GET ANY REFERENCE TO KYOTO DROPPED). -------------- AIRCRAFT NOISE -------------- ¶13. BALANCED APPROACH FOR AIRCRAFT NOISE MANAGEMENT. IN A MAJOR VICTORY FOR THE U.S., THE MEETING ADOPTED THE DRAFT GUIDANCE MATERIAL ON THE BALANCED APPROACH TO AIRCRAFT NOISE MANAGEMENT AS DRAFTED AND AS SUPPORTED BY THE U.S. THE DISCUSSIONS PREDICTABLY ADDRESSED WHETHER THE DOCUMENT WAS SUFFICIENT TO SEND FORWARD TO THE COUNCIL FOR ADOPTION - WAS IT COMPLETE, DID IT ADDRESS THE NEEDS OF ALL MEMBER STATES, ETC.? IN CONCLUSION, THE MEETING ACCEPTED THE MAIN DOCUMENT AND MOST OF ITS ANNEXES WITH NO CHANGES. TWO ANNEXES WILL BE REFERRED FOR FUTURE WORK - CASE STUDIES THAT DEMONSTRATE HOW AIRPORTS HAVE APPLIED ELEMENTS OF THE BALANCED APPROACH AND INFORMATION ON ENCROACHMENT STUDIES. THIS WAS A CLEAR VICTORY FOR THE U.S. ¶14. NOISE CERTIFICATION DOCUMENTATION. ¶A. SEVERAL CAEP MEMBER STATES HAVE BEEN PUSHING TO HAVE ONE STANDARDIZED NOISE CERTIFICATE ON BOARD THE AIRCRAFT. EUROPEAN STATES REQUIRE A STAND-ALONE NOISE CERTIFICATE CARRIED ON BOARD THE AIRCRAFT WHEREAS THE U.S. DOCUMENTS NOISE CERTIFICATION IN THE AIRCRAFT FLIGHT MANUAL. THERE ARE CURRENTLY SEVERAL DIFFERENT METHODS IN USE INTERNATIONALLY. IN VIEW OF THE WIDE VARIETY OF ADMINISTRATIVE SYSTEMS ALREADY IN USE FOR NOISE CERTIFICATION DOCUMENTATION, IT WAS DEEMED NECESSARY TO ADOPT THREE ALTERNATIVE STANDARDIZED OPTIONS. THE THREE OPTIONS ARE: 1) ALL INFORMATION ITEMS CONTAINED IN A SINGLE DOCUMENT, A STAND ALONE NOISE CERTIFICATE; 2) TWO COMPLEMENTARY DOCUMENTS OF WHICH THE SECOND WOULD BE THE AFM OR THE AIRCRAFT OPERATING MANUAL (AOM); AND 3) THREE COMPLEMENTARY DOCUMENTS. ¶B. ALTHOUGH SEVERAL MEMBERS FAVORED ONE STAND-ALONE NOISE CERTIFICATE, IT WAS RECOGNIZED THAT THIS PROPOSAL WAS A LARGE LEAP FORWARD, AND DUE TO EXISTING STATE PRACTICES, GOING ANY FARTHER AT THIS TIME WOULD NOT BE PRACTICABLE. THE MEETING AGREED TO ACCEPT THE THREE OPTIONS, BUT TO REVISIT THE ISSUE IN THE FUTURE. ¶15. ENGINE THRUST DERATE. ¶A. THIS DISCUSSION FOCUSED ON THE METHOD USED TO ENSURE COMPLIANCE WITH REDUCED THRUST REQUIREMENTS FOR NOISE REDUCTIONS. THE MEETING CONSIDERED THREE WAYS THAT A THRUST DERATE COULD BE IMPLEMENTED. THESE INCLUDED A REVISION TO THE AIRCRAFT FLIGHT MANUAL (AFM),A PHYSICAL ENGINE THRUST LIMITATION OR A RE-DESIGNATION OF THE ENGINE. ¶B. THE EUROPEAN VIEW, ONE ENSHRINED IN EUROPEAN CIVIL AVIATION CONFERENCE (ECAC) PROCEDURES, REQUIRES A PHYSICAL LIMITATION TO ENSURE COMPLIANCE. THE U.S. VIEW, SUPPORTED IN A WORKING PAPER PRESENTED BY THE U.S. MEMBER, IS THAT AN AFM ENTRY IS SUFFICIENT. THE U.S. ARGUMENT IS THAT THE AFM IS SUFFICIENT TO ENSURE SAFETY COMPLIANCE, AND HAS BEEN THE ACCEPTED METHODOLOGY INTERNATIONALLY TO ENSURE SAFETY. ¶C. SINCE ALL THREE OPTIONS WILL NEED TO BE EXPLORED IN FUTURE WORK, INTERIM GUIDANCE WAS PRESENTED FOR USE WHILE THIS ISSUE IS CONSIDERED FURTHER. THE U.S. AND OTHERS WERE CONCERNED THAT THE INTERIM GUIDANCE SEEMED TO BE A STEP-BY- STEP PROCESS THAT WOULD LEAD TO PHYSICAL LIMITS. THE INTERIM GUIDANCE WAS FINALLY REDRAFTED TO ONLY SUGGEST THAT THERE ARE DIFFERENT WAYS TO ENSURE COMPLIANCE, AND THAT IT IS UP TO THE CERTIFICATING AUTHORITY TO DETERMINE. ¶16. REVISION OF NOISE LEVELS WITHIN THE SAME CHAPTER. THERE WAS ALSO SOME DISCUSSION OF THE METHODOLOGY TO BE USED IN THE REVISION OF NOISE LEVELS WITHIN THE SAME CERTIFICATION STANDARD, OR CHAPTER. THE MEETING AGREED THAT THERE IS A NEED TO REVISE THE NOISE LEVELS OF SOME AIRCRAFT WITHIN THE SAME CHAPTER, AND ENDORSED THE NEED TO DEVELOP GUIDANCE ON THIS ISSUE WITHIN THE FUTURE WORK PROGRAM. ¶17. ALIGNMENT OF HELICOPTER NOISE CERTIFICATION STANDARDS. THE MEETING ACCEPTED NEW LANGUAGE FOR ICAO ANNEX 6 - OPERATION OF AIRCRAFT, PART III - INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS - HELICOPTERS, TO ALIGN ANNEX 6 PROVISIONS WITH THE RELEVANT HELICOPTER NOISE PROVISIONS OF ANNEX 16 - ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, VOLUME I - AIRCRAFT NOISE. THE TEXT CURRENTLY SUGGESTS THAT ALL HELICOPTERS ARE REQUIRED TO CARRY A NOISE CERTIFICATION DOCUMENT WHEN IN FACT SOME HELICOPTERS, AS SPECIFIED IN ANNEX 16 ARE EXEMPT FROM NOISE CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS. -------------- FUTURE WORK -------------- ¶18. CAEP WORKING METHODS. THE U.S. HAD LED AN INTERNAL CAEP TASK FORCE TO EXAMINE THE STRUCTURE AND PROCESSES OF CAEP OVER THE LAST TWO-AND-A HALF YEARS. THIS WAS INITIATED AT THE REQUEST OF THE ICAO PRESIDENT, DR. KOTAITE. THE TASK FORCE RECOMMENDED TO THE MEETING THAT THREE AREAS NEEDED TO BE DEVELOPED - ORGANIZATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL GOALS, CAEP STRUCTURE, AND ICAO RESOURCES. ¶A. GOALS - THESE WOULD NEED TO BE SET NECESSARILY BROAD BECAUSE OF THEIR GLOBAL NATURE, AND THE VARYING NEEDS OF ICAO'S 188 MEMBER STATES. THEY WERE CONSIDERED IMPORTANT IN HELPING SET ORGANIZATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL PRIORITIES, AND IN MEASURING THE SUCCESS OF THE CAEP WORK PROGRAM. THE MEETING AGREED ON THE FOLLOWING: ICAO IS CONSCIOUS OF ITS RESPONSIBILITY AND THAT OF ITS CONTRACTING STATES TO ACHIEVE MAXIMUM COMPATIBILITY BETWEEN THE SAFE AND ORDERLY DEVELOPMENT OF CIVIL AVIATION AND THE QUALITY OF THE ENVIRONMENT. IN CARRYING ON ITS RESPONSIBILITY, ICAO WILL STRIVE TO: 1) LIMIT OR REDUCE THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE AFFECTED BY SIGNIFICANT AIRCRAFT NOISE; 2) LIMIT OR REDUCE THE IMPACT OF AVIATION EMISSIONS ON LOCAL AIR QUALITY; AND 3) LIMIT OR REDUCE AVIATION GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS ON THE GLOBAL CLIMATE. ¶B. CAEP STRUCTURE - WITH A VIEW TO STREAMLINING THE PROCESS, TO BETTER COORDINATING THE WORK OF VARIOUS TASK GROUPS, AND TO START TO DEAL WITH THE INTERDEPENDENCIES OF BOTH NOISE AND EMISSIONS, THE MEETING AGREED TO A SLIGHTLY STREAMLINED WORKING GROUP STRUCTURE. THE TECHNICAL WORKING GROUPS ON NOISE AND EMISSIONS WOULD REMAIN THE SAME. THE WORK OF WORKING GROUP 2, NOISE - AIRPORTS AND OPERATIONS, AND THAT OF WORKING GROUP 4, EMISSIONS - OPERATIONAL ISSUES, WOULD BE COMBINED INTO A NEW WORKING GROUP 2, OPERATIONS. THIS GROUP WILL DEVELOP GUIDANCE MATERIAL (FOR EXAMPLE, THE BALANCED APPROACH),AND EXPLORE OPERATIONAL ISSUES RELATED TO AIRCRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE. CAEP'S ECONOMICS SUPPORT GROUP (FESG) WILL ALSO REMAIN INTACT. ¶C. ICAO RESOURCES - THE MEETING AGREED THAT SINCE ICAO HAS LISTED ENVIRONMENT AS ONE OF ITS TOP THREE PRIORITIES, SECOND ONLY TO SAFETY AND SECURITY, IT WAS TIME TO EXPAND CAEP SUPPORT BEYOND SIMPLY HAVING ONE STAFF PERSON ACTING AS THE CAEP SECRETARY. THE MEETING ENDORSED THE CREATION OF AN ENVIRONMENTAL UNIT WITH DEDICATED STAFFING AND FUNDING. THIS HAS BECOME A CONTENTIOUS ISSUE WITHIN CAEP AND ICAO AS THE SECRETARY GENERAL ANNOUNCED, A MONTH BEFORE CAEP/6 STARTED, THAT A UNIT HAD BEEN FORMED. UNFORTUNATELY, THE UNIT CREATED BY ICAO WAS UNRESPONSIVE TO THE RECOMMENDATIONS IN THE CAEP RESTRUCTURING REPORT. NOT ONLY DOES IT HAVE NO ADDITIONAL RESOURCES, IT PRODUCES MORE COMPLEXITY IN COMMUNICATION AND COORDINATION- AS ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITIES ARE MOVED TO THE AIR TRANSPORT BUREAU WHILE THE ANNEXES THAT CAEP HAS RESPONSIBILITY FOR REMAIN IN THE MORE TECHNICAL AIR NAVIGATION BUREAU. THE REPORT OF THE MEETING EXPRESSES THE DISPLEASURE OF SEVERAL MEMBERS OVER THIS MOVE AND APPARENT CONTINUING LACK OF ADEQUATE SUPPORT TO CAEP. THE U.S. SHARES THESE VIEWS. ¶19. U.S. INITIATIVE ON ADDRESSING INTERDEPENDENCIES OF VARIOUS ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS ¶A. THE U.S. DELEGATION ALSO PRESENTED A PAPER ON A VISION FOR THE FUTURE - DEVELOPING A MORE EFFECTIVE APPROACH TO ADDRESSING INTERDEPENDENCIES AMONG ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS. THIS PAPER CALLED ON CAEP TO CONSIDER THE INTERDEPENDENCIES BETWEEN NOISE AND EMISSIONS, AND BETWEEN THE VARIOUS EMISSIONS, IN ITS FUTURE WORK AND PROPOSED BOTH NEAR-TERM AND LONGER-TERM ACTIONS THAT SEEK TO ENHANCE ICAO'S ABILITY TO ADDRESS THIS CRITICAL ASPECT OF ITS MANDATE. THE U.S. VIEWS THIS AS A USEFUL ANALYTICAL APPROACH FOR MOVING FORWARD IN DEALING WITH AVIATION ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES IN AN INTEGRATED FASHION. ¶B. TO PROVIDE MORE INFORMATION ON THIS APPROACH, THE FAA HOSTED A RECEPTION AT ICAO HEADQUARTERS FOR THE HEADS OF THE MEMBER AND OBSERVER ORGANIZATIONS. THE GOAL WAS TO INTRODUCE A METHODOLOGY, AND THE CAPABILITY, TO RECOGNIZE AND ADDRESS THE INTERDEPENDENCIES OF ALL ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS - VARIOUS ENGINE EMISSIONS AND NOISE - IN FUTURE CAEP WORK AND DECISIONS. THE FAA PRESENTED ITS WORK ON TOOLS TO FOSTER A SYSTEMS APPROACH TO ADDRESSING ALL ASPECTS OF NOISE AND EMISSIONS ISSUES IN THE FUTURE. ¶C. THERE SEEMED TO BE GENERAL ACCEPTANCE FOR THE U.S. VIEWS AND INITIATIVE BY THE MEMBERS, AND AGREEMENT TO CONTINUE WORK THAT WOULD SUPPORT SUCH AN APPROACH IN THE FUTURE. ¶20. TECHNICAL WORK PROGRAMS. THE MEETING ACCEPTED A LONG LIST OF TASKS FOR THE TECHNICAL WORKING GROUPS WITHOUT ATTEMPTING TO PARE THE LIST DOWN OR TO PRIORITIZE THE SPECIFIC ITEMS. IT WAS DECIDED THAT THE WORKING GROUPS WOULD PROVIDE INPUT ON THESE ISSUES TO THE NEXT CAEP STEERING GROUP SCHEDULED FOR BONN GERMANY ON NOVEMBER 2004. ¶21. THE MEMBERS OF THE U.S. DELEGATION WERE PROFESSIONAL AND WORKED EFFECTIVELY AS A TEAM TO ACHIEVE OBJECTIVES OF THE U.S. POSITION. DELEGATION MEMBERS REPRESENTED THE UNITED STATES WELL AND ARE TO BE COMMENDED STIMPSON ALLEN