Bureau Waardenburg

Impact assessment studies
Birds, aircraft and flight safety

During their daily movements birds most frequently make use of the lower air layer. During migratory periods, mainly spring and autumn, birds also make use of the upper atmosphere for travelling large distances. Birds, however, are not the only users of the airspace and can come into contact with aircraft. Most collisions between birds and aircraft occur at or near the airport and much less in the upper air layers. Collisions between birds and aircrafts cause more than one billion Euros worth of damage per year. Collisions also comprise the safety of air passengers, sometimes with fatal consequences. To ensure the safety of air passengers in the Netherlands legal instruments exist and include the Civil and Military Aviation Acts (Regeling Burgerluchthavens en Militaire Luchthavens (RBML)) and the Flora and Fauna Law (Flora- en faunawet). Bureau Waardenburg has extensive experience and expertise in the field of birds and aircraft. The following types of projects have been undertaken:

research into the numbers and patterns of air traffic movements and risks from birds;
advising on preventive measures at an airport or heliport in respect to flight safety;
determining the effects of spatial operation near an airport for flight safety;
determining the effects of a spatial intervention for an airport located near nature areas.

Airport Layout Descision

Birds and aircraft around an airport make use of the same airspace and as a consequence are at risk of collision with each other. The possibility of collision between birds and aircrafts influences the safety of air travel. Therefore, every effort is made to reduce this risk as much as possible. One of the tools for this is the Airport Layout Descision (Luchthaven Indelingsbesluit (LIB)). For Schiphol this is ready and for other airports in preparation. In an Airport Layout Descision the construction of marshes, larger waterbodies and bird sanctuaries are not permitted within a radius of 6 km. These elements include parts of an urban plan, a conservation project, etc. Only after the permission of the Minitries of ‘Transport, Public Works and Water Management’ and ‘Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment’ (V&W en VROM) can prohibition be waived. This is in agreement that wildlife impact studies are behind the descission and that the following issues have been considered:

the current landscape;
the current bird populations;
the current movement of birds on and around the airport;
the future landscape;
the future bird populations;
the expected movements of birds in the future;
a comparison of the current and future situation, which concludes with an assessment of the
increase or decrease in risks to air safety.

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Relationships between planes and birds

Within the area of aviation and birds are two important relationships:

the effects of birds (and other animals) on air traffic;
the effects of air traffic on birds (and other animals).

In the the first case we assess the risk to air traffic from birds and in the second we assess te disturbance to birds from air traffic. In the case of the latter, there is a lot of (international) knowledge available, which is sumaarised literature reviews. However, not all of this research, from situations around the world, is directly comparable to Dutch situations. Therefore, research on both of these subjects is carried out at airports within the Netherlands. For this type of research both specialist observers and/or radar are used. Studies include: Disturbance;

disturbance of geese and wigeon under the flight path of Groningen airport Eelde;

Risks;

waterbirds (e.g. gulls) around Eindhoven and the risks for air traffic;
numbers and densities of birds in the lower air layers of Eindhoven airport;
birds around the Polderbaan runway of Schiphol airport and the risks for air traffic;
movements of greylag geese over the runway areas of Schiphol airport;
origins of greylag geese around Schiphol airport.

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Nature, birds and effects of air traffic

Aircraft flying at lower altitudes can have a disturbing effect on birds and other wildlife in the area under the flight path. In reality, this is not a single disturbance that causes the movement of an animal from an area, but only when a certain intensity, duration and frequency of disturbance is reached do birds (an other animals) leave the area permanently. In cases where the species or area concerned are protected (e.g. a Nature 2000 site) and numbers decline the conservation objectives of the area would not be met. The protection of wildlife is regulated under the Flora and Fauna Law (Flora- en faunawet - species) and Nature Conservation Law (Natuurbeschermingswet - areas). From these laws criteria can be derived with which to assess the effects of disturbance by air traffic. These assessments should be based on adequate estimates of the effects.

Bureau Waardenburg has extensive experience and expertise as well as the tools to make estimates of the effects of disturbance by air traffic and evaluate these inlight of relevant laws and regulations. Projects in this field have been undertaken for Schiphol Amsterdam airport, Rotterdam airport, Lelystad airport, Groningen airport Eelde, Maastricht Aachen airport and airport Midden-Zeeland.

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Research birds & flight safety

During their daily movements birds most frequently make use of the lower air layer. During migratory periods, mainly spring and autumn, birds also make use of the upper atmosphere for travelling large distances. Observers can use binoculars and telescopes to observe the flight patterns of birds. The human eye, however, has limitations, especially when obseving small species or over long distances and at high altitudes. To overcome these limits radars can be used. The disadvantage is that the radar does not identify birds, only objects. For the identification of species the observers play an important role. Only in combination with visual observations can the horzantal and vertical movements of birds in the lower air layers be completely characterised. The radar is a proven tool for the study of bird movements. In recent years, Bureau Waardenburg has carried out a large number of studies, which combine both field and radar observations. These studies are not limited to in and around airports but also cover other frameworks such as the assessment of the potential impacts of wind turbines on birds.

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Projecten
	Reports and publications

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