Perth Airport. Runway 21 Night-Time Departure Trial Proposal. Environmental Analysis Summary. August Airservices Australia 1 of 17

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1 Perth Airport Runway 21 Night-Time Departure Trial Proposal Environmental Analysis Summary August 2015 Airservices Australia 1 of 17

2 Change Summary Version Date Change Description Amended by 1 6 August 2015 New document Community Relations 2 of 17

3 Environmental Analysis Summary Night Time Departure Trial Proposal - Perth Table of Contents Introduction... 3 The Proposal... 3 Figure 1 - Map Noise Metrics... 5 Noise Metric LAmax... 5 Population Analysis... 6 Assessment... 7 Assumptions... 7 Aircraft Types... 7 Number of Flights... 7 Analysis... 8 Analysis of Impact... 8 Natural Environment Cultural and Heritage Values Findings Conclusion Attachment 1 - N60 and N70 contour maps Current departure flight path B777ER aircraft Proposed night-time departure flight path B777ER aircraft Current departure flight path A aircraft Proposed night-time departure flight path A aircraft Current departure flight path A aircraft Proposed night-time departure flight path of 17

4 Environmental Analysis Summary Night Time Departure Trial Proposal - Perth Introduction Perth Airport is Australia s fourth largest in terms of passenger numbers and operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. There are currently about 150,000 aircraft movements (take offs and landings) each year and this is expected to rise to 222,000 by The main runway at Perth Airport (Runway 03/21) is aligned north/south and the shorter cross runway (Runway 06/24) is aligned northeast to southwest. When considering air traffic management procedures, safety is always Airservices first priority. The organisation must also balance its legislated responsibilities to foster the growth of Australian aviation with mitigating the environmental impacts, especially noise, as far as practicable. Airservices considers Perth air traffic management holistically, with a view to implementing the best overall noise outcome for the community, whilst ensuring that the efficiency of the airport is not reduced, particularly runway capacity and airline on-time performance. Any changes to address noise impacts that are proposed for one section of the community are not considered in isolation to other areas. Airservices will make changes to improve noise outcomes where they are operationally feasible and valued by the community. Since 2010, 31 proposed changes to flight paths and air traffic management procedures have been considered for the Perth metropolitan area with 10 changes implemented or about to be implemented. The Proposal A longstanding departure flight path from Runway 21 to the south-west of Perth Airport along the Swan River is mostly used by aircraft heading for destinations to the north of Perth when required to depart to the south. Largely in response to the mining industry and tourism demand for more flights, use of this flight path has tripled since On 5 March 2015, Airservices announced a proposal to trial for 12-months a new departure flight path to the south at night (10pm to 5am). The aim was to provide night-time respite for residents along the Swan River without negatively impacting other areas of the Perth community. As illustrated in the map at Figure 1, it was proposed that those aircraft currently using this departure flight path would delay their turn towards the coast until they reached a point adjacent to Jandakot Airport; they would then turn to a heading of 245 degrees and subsequently either continue westward or turn to the north after reaching 8,000 feet. As aircraft would reach this altitude at a differing points according to their weight and climb performance, a wide spread of tracks across the northward turn would be expected. The proposed flight path was designed to maximise overflight of non-residential land to the south of Perth Airport and in the vicinity of Jandakot Airport. It aimed to provide aircraft the opportunity to gain sufficient altitude over non-residential areas with low-level noise impact when they subsequently flew over residential areas. Consideration of the proposed trial was subject to the completion of the required environmental assessment and community consultation processes. 4 of 17

5 Figure 1 - Map Environmental Analysis Summary Night Time Departure Trial Proposal - Perth Map data 2015 Google Current southern departure night-time flight paths shown in blue. Proposed night-time departure trial flight path shown in yellow. 5 of 17

6 Environmental Analysis Summary Night Time Departure Trial Proposal - Perth How is noise measured? Noise is measured using A-weighted decibels (dba) which is a representation of the loudness of sounds in the air as perceived by the human ear. To measure the maximum sound level of a single noise event, LAmax is calculated. This indicates the highest noise level a person on the ground would hear from a single aircraft overflight (arrival or departure). The noise metrics used in this document provides information on the noise of individual over flights and the number of noise events for all areas situated under the proposed flight path. It is known that the potential impact of noise upon communities will vary dependent upon land use, with urban areas frequently reporting a higher acceptance of increased noise levels than rural areas due to higher ambient noise levels associated with transport, traffic and other activities. Noise Metrics Airservices has noted that the following threshold values have been observed as reliable indicators of increased community awareness of aircraft noise changes in urban areas, and these have been applied in order to determine potential significance as defined in Section 160 of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth). Noise Metric LAmax The LAmax is the maximum noise level from a single noise event which may be modelled or measured. LAmax results are reported in dba, rounded to the nearest whole decibel. LAmax is also reported graphically in 60 dba and 70 dba noise contours, representing the geographical area within which the maximum noise of a single over flight event is likely to be at or above these threshold levels. The change in LAmax noise levels with reference to how people may perceive the sound is outlined below, noting that each individual may experience sound and perceive changes in noise levels differently: LAmax noise level changes of up to 3 dba are not likely to be perceptible. LAmax noise level changes of between 3 dba and 5 dba may be perceptible. LAmax noise level increases of between 5 dba and 10 dba are likely to be perceptible. LAmax noise levels of greater than 10 dba may be perceived as twice as loud. Some comparisons of sound levels most people would experience on a regular basis are shown below. A noise level heard outside a house will generally be reduced by 10 dba inside the house due to the attenuation of walls and building fabric as noted in Australian Standard of 17

7 Environmental Analysis Summary Night Time Departure Trial Proposal - Perth Above are some comparisons of sound levels most of us would experience on a regular basis. Population Analysis The number of people living within each LAmax contour is estimated utilising a geospatial software package in conjunction with 2011 Census data. Population figures are rounded to the nearest 50 persons. 7 of 17

8 Assessment Assumptions Aircraft noise impacts were modelled using the Integrated Noise Model (INM) 7.0B, based on traffic movement data from the Noise and Flight Path Monitoring System. Data is from 2014, the most recent 12-month period available without significant operational disruptions. Aircraft Types Three representative aircraft types were modelled: Highest use of the existing departure flight path - Airbus A330 (31% of flights) and A320 (26%) Noisiest aircraft on the existing departure flight path Boeing B777 (21%) There were 2,215 departures from Runway 21 between 10pm and 5am in The majority were long haul internationals travelling to destinations in the Middle East (537), South Africa (271), Hong Kong (273) and South East Asia (1,068), with the remainder heading to northern Western Australia (66). Number of Flights When assessing the noise impacts of the proposal, data was collected for all aircraft types on the existing flight paths between 10pm and 5am and on predicted use after the proposed change. Table 1 below provides the breakup of existing departures from Runway 21 per hour that use flight paths over the Swan River and shows that 70 per cent of flights occur between 10pm and 1am. Table 1: Existing departures 2014 Time Runway 21 departures to west and north Total 2215 In 2014, on 44 nights, there were no departure flights to the west and north from Runway 21 with 10 flights occurring on a busy night (90 th percentile). 1 1 In a data set the 90 th percentile is the value for which 90% of the data points are smaller and 10% are bigger. In this example, the 90 th percentile of 10 flights occurring means there were only 10% more flights on the busiest night i.e. there were 11 flights on the busiest night. The 90 th percentile measure is used as a means to manage infrequent peaks or anomalies in the data. 8 of 17

9 A change to the preferences that Air Traffic Control uses to select runways, which took effect on 28 May 2015, is estimated to reduce the number of nights Runway 21 is used for departures by an average of 25 per cent. If the reduction in the number of nights is achieved as expected, this will result in 124 nights a year with no departures from Runway 21 with an average of nine flights from that runway to the west and north (over the Swan River area) on a busy night. Analysis The proposal aimed to provide night-time respite to suburbs adjacent to the Swan River including: Applecross, Ardross, Booragoon, Como, Manning, Mount Pleasant, Riverton, Rossmoyne, Salter Point, Shelley, Waterford and Wilson plus areas north of the Swan which are intermittently overflown by aircraft after they turn to the north. The proposed trial flight path was designed to maximise overflight of industrial areas around Jandakot Airport with tracking over suburbs including: Beeliar, Canning Vale, Cockburn Central, Harrisdale, Langford, Munster, South Lake, Thornlie and Yangebup. These areas experience flights from operations at Jandakot Airport and are already overflown by small numbers of departures from Perth Airport at night. Some of the areas are overflown by arrivals to Perth Airport at night, which would continue. However, the introduction of a Smart Tracking (satellite navigation for aircraft) flight path to the southeast of Perth Airport in September 2015 is expected to result in approximately 1,100 fewer arrival flights initially tracking over suburbs between Casuarina and Canning Vale at night (10pm to 5am). Analysis of Impact The numbers of departure flights over these impacted areas are shown in Table 2 below for a busy night. Where there is an increase in excess of three additional flights per night, the change is expected to be noticeable. The noise levels at these selected locations are expected to be above 60dBA for both the B777 and A330 aircraft (52% of flights) which is likely to cause sleep disturbance. Table 2: Number of departure flights per busy night over areas impacted Suburb Current flights Proposed flights Lynwood 0 9 Canning Vale 0 9 Harrisdale 0 3 Munster 0 5 Thornlie 0 9 Cockburn Central 0 9 South Lake 0 9 Yangebup 0 9 Langford 0 9 Beeliar 0 9 Southern River 0 9 Beaconsfield 0 7 Coogee 0 4 Hamilton Hill 0 3 Spearwood of 17

10 Twelve suburbs 2 would have a potentially significant environmental impact under the terms of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth). Although the number of additional flights over these areas would be relatively low, the events would occur at a sensitive time of night and some areas would be newly overflown by departures from Perth Airport. The assessment showed that with one exception the number of people within the N60 and N70 LAmax contours would increase (up to 6.5% for the loudest aircraft type). Table 3 below shows the change in populations within the N60 and N70 contours for the three aircraft types which comprise about 80% of flights during the proposed trial hours. See also the N60 and N70 contour maps at Attachment 1. Table 3: Populations impacted by the trial proposal Aircraft Type Contour Current Proposed Difference B777ER N60 180, , ,850 N70 43,600 45, ,650 A N60 127, , N70 26,150 26, A N60 61,600 62, N70 7,000 7, Table 4 below shows the difference in noise levels and numbers of departure flights at night between current operations and the result of implementing the trial proposal. Note that some of these areas currently receive aircraft noise from Jandakot Airport flights (day and night) and from arrival flights to Perth Airport at night; these flights will continue regardless of the trial proposal. Table 4 Changes in noise impacts for some areas Location 3 Current Proposed Difference dba No Flights dba No Flights dba No Flights Thornlie (south) Canning Vale < >22 9 (central) Canning Vale (south) < >21 9 Cockburn Central < >17 9 Beeliar < >14 9 Munster < >14 5 Beaconsfield < > Beeliar, Canning Vale, Cockburn Central, Coogee, Harrisdale, Langford, Lynwood, Munster, Southern River, South Lake, Thornlie and Yangebup. 3 Thornlie (south) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, 215 Yale Road; Canning Vale (central) Canning Vale College, 26 Dumbarton Road; Canning Vale (south) Ranford Primary School, Orkney Crescent; Cockburn Central Gateway Community Church; Beeliar South Coogee Primary School, 40 Ivankovich Avenue; Munster Challenger Tafe, Gardiner Avenue; Beaconsfield Christ The King School, 87 York Street. 10 of 17

11 Natural Environment The Department of the Environment Protected Matters Search Tool was utilised to determine if any aspect of the proposed changes would overfly national parks, sensitive wetland areas or other areas of environmental significance. The proposal did not expose any new areas to aircraft noise. Although there would be increases in the number of overflights, these were not expected to have an adverse effect on the natural environment. Cultural and Heritage Values The Noongar people are acknowledged as the traditional custodians of the Perth area. No new areas of cultural significance would be overflown as a result of the proposed changes. Findings As a result of the analysis, it is expected there would potentially be a significant environmental impact on a number of suburbs from implementing the proposal. The areas impacted do not currently experience a high level of departure flights at night. Although the number of additional overflights would be relatively low, the events would occur at a sensitive time of the night and may cause sleep disturbance. The analysis shows that if the trial were to proceed, then there would be more people impacted by aircraft noise than under current procedures. There would also be a major increase in noise levels for some areas that currently receive only a small number of overflights at night. This is exclusively related to most aircraft types being unable to achieve altitude in a manner that would create the intended noise benefit. Conclusion The proposal objective was to find an alternative departure flight path at night that would reduce the noise over parts of Perth while not making the situation significantly worse for any other group. Unfortunately, this objective cannot be achieved. 11 of 17

12 Attachment 1 - N60 and N70 contour maps Current departure flight path B777ER aircraft LAmax 60 LAmax of 17

13 Proposed night-time departure flight path B777ER aircraft LAmax 60 for aircraft heading south-west LAmax 70 for aircraft heading south-west LAmax 60 for aircraft heading north LAmax 70 for aircraft heading north 13 of 17

14 Current departure flight path A aircraft LAmax 60 LAmax of 17

15 Proposed night-time departure flight path A aircraft LAmax 60 for aircraft heading south-west LAmax 70 for aircraft heading south-west LAmax 60 for aircraft heading north LAmax 70 for aircraft heading north 15 of 17

16 Current departure flight path A aircraft LAmax 60 LAmax of 17

17 Proposed night-time departure flight path A aircraft LAmax 60 for aircraft heading south-west LAmax 60 for aircraft heading north LAmax 70 for aircraft heading north 17 of 17