A Dutch court has ruled that a ‘balanced approach’ procedure must be followed in tackling noise issues at Amsterdam Schiphol airport, meaning different mitigating options are considered before any reduction in slots are implemented.
It marks the latest twist in a series of legal challenges and counter-moves since the Dutch government in the summer of 2022 proposed cutting flight capacity at Schiphol – from an annual maximum of 500,000 down to 440,000 movements – in a bid to find a “new equilibrium” between flight activity and noise pollution at the airport.
The controversial plans to cap Schiphol’s annual flight movements at 460,000 under an Experimental Regulation were suspended by the Dutch government last year after pressure from the European Commission and US Department of Transportation, in addition to airlines, amid concerns the new scheme may violate Open Skies agreements.
However, moves to cut capacity could have been enforced as early as this winter, after a Dutch appeal court had sided with the Dutch government in ruling it could press ahead with its Experimental Regulation.
That appeal ruling overturned an initial court decision which had backed the requirement for a balanced approach procedure to be followed, and now the Dutch Supreme Court has reinstated the original ruling.
”The Supreme Court rules that the court of appeal wrongly decided that the proposed measures are exempt from the procedure of the balanced approach prescribed by European rules,” it says, arguing cutting flight capacity must be regarded as a noise-related operating restriction within the meaning of the European regulation.
”This regulation does not provide a basis for exempting a temporary and experimental measure that results in access to or the operational capacity of an airport being restricted from the scope of application. The state can therefore only implement the proposed measures if the procedure of the balanced approach has been completed,” the Supreme Court rules.
Schiphol’s biggest carrier KLM says it is supports the Supreme Court’s ”clearly substantiated ruling”.
It adds: ”KLM wants to continue to connect the Netherlands with the rest of the world in balance with the environment. To this end, we have drawn up the cleaner, quieter and more fuel-efficient plan, which shows that the common goal of reducing noise pollution can be achieved without reducing the number of aircraft movements.”
The plan to cut capacity at Schiphol was proposed by the previous Dutch government, which collapsed last year. After months of wrangling, a new government was sworn in earlier this month.
Willie Walsh, director general of IATA – which was among those to challenge the appeal court ruling – says: ”We expect the new Dutch Government will respect today’s decision and proceed to apply the balanced approach, which is also enshrined in EU law and international treaties, with the utmost care with regards to Schiphol.
”Furthermore, we hope any other government thinking of disregarding the balanced approach will take note of this decision. It is a proven and successful process and should not be ignored.”
