Abstract

Introduction and Background: The management of noise stemming from airport operations has been at the center of regulatory efforts aimed at balancing airport expansion with both environmental and community impacts. This study evaluates the effectiveness of community involvement in creating and implementing noise mitigation programs. It explored the methods through which airports are adopting federal regulations, established by agencies such as the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and implementing initiatives, such as Noise Compatibility Programs (NCPs) and Noise Exposure Maps (NEMs). Specific regulations reviewed include 14 CFR Part 150, 14 CFR Part 160, and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Specific attention was applied to the community involvement aspects of these processes.

Methodology: Five airports of different National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS) categories were identified as case studies for gaining insights into implemented programs and regulations. The airports, each representing a different airport classification, are Akron-Canton Regional Airport (CAK, Non-Hub); Westover Metropolitan Airport (CEF, Regional-Hub); Fresno Yosemite International Airport (FAT, Small-Hub); Indianapolis International Airport (IND, Medium-Hub); and Seattle-Tacoma International (SEA, Large-Hub). Following the selection of the five case study airports, each airport’s NEM and NCP implementations were analyzed, as well as the most effective noise mitigation practices.

Results/Findings: Following the analysis, various community-involved abatement strategies were developed. The findings show that noise abatement NCPs, such as preferential runway adoption and noise insulation for schools and residential areas, showed the most efficacy. Furthermore, iterative engagement with communities to evaluate noise procedure effectiveness, through outreach workshops and stakeholders’ meetings, has been shown to fuel shared understanding and alignment around noise management strategies. Lastly, it was also shown that community involvement directly impacts the success & transparency of noise mitigation programs – airports with higher community engagement levels showed greater long-term sustainability and increased public trust.

Conclusions: This study sought to identify and evaluate various community involvement strategies used by airports in their efforts to mitigate noise pollution around airports. Case study methodology was used, and selected noise mitigation strategies at five NPIAS airports were analyzed. The study found notable mitigation strategies have been used and are deemed successful in some airports. The degree of efficacy varies based on airport size and NPIAS category. For instance, large hub airports had significant success with noise mitigation programs compared to non hub airports. The authors conclude that more studies are needed to draw conclusive results on the efficacy of noise mitigation strategies in airports across the United States and globally. Future studies will focus on expanding the number of case studies and including quantitative data from additional airports.

Selected Citations:

Federal Aviation Administration, U. S. D. o. T. (1984). 14 CFR Part 150: Airport Noise Compatibility Planning. (Docket No. 18691). Retrieved from https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-14/chapter-I/subchapter-I/part-150

Federal Aviation Administration, U. S. D. o. T. (1991). 14 CFR Part 161: Notice and Approval of Airport Noise and Access Restrictions. (Docket No. 26432). Retrieved from https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-14/chapter-I/subchapter-I/part-161

National Academies of Sciences, E., and Medicine. (2022). Primer and Framework for Considering and Airport Noise and Operations Monitoring System (ACRP Research Report 237). T. N. A. Press. https://nap.nationalacademies.org/read/26527/chapter/1

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Documents and Reports. Retrieved from Documents. Port of Seattle. (n.d.). https://seapart150.com/documents/

Keywords

Noise Mitigation, Airport, Community Involvement, Noise Compatibility Programs, Noise Exposure Maps

Date of this Version

12-8-2025

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