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Guidelines for Community Aviation Consultation Groups

Introduction

These Guidelines for Community Aviation Consultation Groups (‘the Guidelines’) are
intended to assist those involved in establishing, running and participating in Community
Aviation Consultation Groups for the leased federal airports subject to Commonwealth
planning.1

In the 2009 National Aviation Policy White Paper,2 the Commonwealth Government
indicated these airports would be required to establish Community Aviation Consultation
Groups to ensure appropriate community engagement on airport planning and operations.
Accordingly, leased federal airports now have a responsibility to establish and maintain
permanent Community Aviation Consultation Groups. Background on the White Paper is
attached.

The 21 leased federal airports vary in size and activity, have distinct community interests, and
have different development and operational requirements with specific plans underpinning
those requirements. The arrangements put in place for one Community Aviation Consultation
Group will not necessarily be appropriate for another. Of course, many airports already have
consultative mechanisms in place (such as the Sydney Airport Community Forum). These
Guidelines are intended to be sufficiently flexible for each airport to implement good
consultation arrangements, specific to its circumstances, and to ensure the arrangements
evolve and improve over time.

Role and purpose of Community Aviation Consultation Groups

The purpose of Community Aviation Consultation Groups is to:

• enable airport operators, residents in the vicinity of the airport, local authorities,
airport users, and other interested parties to exchange information and ideas;
• allow concerns to be raised and taken into account by the airport operator, with a
genuine desire to resolve issues that may emerge; and
• complement and support the consultative requirements of the regulatory and planning
framework within which the airport operates.

However, it is important to note that consultation undertaken in the Community Aviation

Consultation Group is not intended to:

1
These airports are currently Adelaide, Archerfield, Alice Springs, Bankstown, Brisbane, Camden, Canberra,
Darwin, Essendon, Gold Coast, Hobart, Jandakot, Launceston, Melbourne, Moorabbin, Parafield, Perth, Sydney,
and Townsville.
2
The White Paper is available at <infrastructure.gov.au/aviation/nap>.
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• unnecessarily constrain the duty of the airport operator to effectively and responsibly
manage the airport;
• prevent interested parties from raising concerns directly with the airport, or through
other channels, at any time.

Residents affected by airport operations may sometimes have different, inconsistent or

competing viewpoints. It is not realistic to expect all matters of concern will be resolved
through discussion in the Community Aviation Consultation Group. Community Aviation
Consultation Groups are not intended to be a dispute resolution forum, nor have any
executive or decision making power in relation to the airport.

Terms of reference of the Community Aviation Consultation Group

The terms of reference of the Community Aviation Consultation Group should be formulated
to allow it to consider all matters arising from the operation of the airport. The exact terms of
reference will be at the discretion of the Community Aviation Consultation Group itself, but
could cover:

• existing and proposed airport development and operations, and steps being taken to
implement or develop the airport’s Master Plan;
• proposals to develop or change aviation services;
• noise (including aircraft noise) and environmental issues;
• ground transport and access issues;
• planning, regulatory, and policy matters affecting the airport;
• improvements or changes to airport facilities;
• discussion of complaints-handling procedures;
• reports from Airservices Australia and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority; and
• the contribution of the airport to the local, regional and national economy.

Composition and business of the Community Aviation Consultation Group

In general, the Community Aviation Consultation Group will be composed of a Chair, a

secretariat, and a diverse and representative membership. It should meet at least three times
per year. The constitution and procedural arrangements for the Community Aviation
Consultation Group should be clear and transparent.

Independent Chair

Airports should work closely with neighbouring local councils and others to identify and
engage an appropriate person to chair the Community Aviation Consultation Group. If
possible, the Community Aviation Consultation Group itself should be involved in the
selection process. To ensure continuity in the operation of the committee it is desirable for the
Chair to be appointed for a minimum period.
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The independent conduct of the Chair is critical for the effective functioning of the
Community Aviation Consultation Group. An independent Chair will:

• ensure the input of the full membership is sought as to agenda items;

• ensure adequate discussion time is devoted to issues of significance;
• allow for discussion of unanticipated ‘other business’ at Group meetings;
• ensure agenda materials and papers are meaningful and facilitate effective
engagement of members in Group discussions;
• encourage open discussion and a frank exchange of views; and
• provide for effective follow-up of action items.

Any relevant interests, arrangements and associations of the Chair should be disclosed.

Secretariat

The necessary secretarial support will depend upon the size of the Community Aviation
Consultation Group and the volume and nature of the business handled. The duties of the
secretariat would be expected to include:

• communication of arrangements made for the Community Aviation Consultation

Group, including any framework documents, procedural arrangements, terms of
reference, and so on, to the membership and the Commonwealth in a timely, effective
and reasonable manner;
• preparation, distribution and publication of records of Community Aviation
Consultation Group meetings;
• preparation and distribution of meeting agendas;
• ensuring that Community Aviation Consultation Group members are notified of
meetings and given an opportunity to prepare for meetings;
• supporting the activities of the chair, as required;
• assisting the Community Aviation Consultation Group on policy, technical and other
support issues, where required and appropriate; and
• preparing an annual report of the Community Aviation Consultation Group for the
purpose of consideration as part of the airport’s annual lease review.

Membership

Membership of the Community Aviation Consultation Group should be constituted so as to

primarily represent the interests of:

• aviation services and operators at the airport;

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• community organisations, resident groups or individuals, ensuring the representation

of residents affected by airport development and operations;
• representatives from state or local government bodies, and local tourism bodies and
business groups.

While the size and membership of the Community Aviation Consultation Group will depend
upon local circumstances, it should be both manageable and sufficient to achieve its
objectives. Community organisations or resident groups should be properly incorporated and
represent residents not already on the Community Aviation Consultation Group.

The groups represented will vary between airports. For example, users of an airport that has a
mixture of regular public transport (RPT) and general aviation (GA) functions may
potentially cover a wider spectrum than either a major RPT airport or small, exclusively GA
aerodrome. The scale of interest from the local community and local authorities is also likely
to be more significant at larger airports in proportion to the wider geographic area affected by
airport operations.

The role of airport management in relation to the Community Aviation Consultation Group

It is essential that the airport management participate fully in Community Aviation

Consultation Group proceedings by offering items for the agenda, attending meetings and by
providing relevant information on the operation of the airport. However, as the Community
Aviation Consultation Group’s role is to provide feedback to airport management, it is
recommended that airport employees should not be formal members.

The role of Commonwealth officials

Commonwealth officials, including officers of the Department of Infrastructure, Transport,

Regional Development and Local Government, and of other relevant agencies such as
Airservices Australia and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority, will participate in the activities
of the Community Aviation Consultation Group, but would ordinarily not be formal
members. There is no restriction on officials from other levels of government or from
industry and community bodies being invited by the Group to participate in discussions,
where appropriate and consistent with the Group’s objectives.

Complaints-handling and the Community Aviation Consultation Group

There are formal procedures for recording and responding to complaints about airport
operations, aircraft noise, airport development, ground traffic issues, and other issues
affecting airport users and nearby communities. These arrangements should be well
publicised.

An airport or another party may suggest that a complainant who is dissatisfied with the
airport’s response on a matter of wider interest could contact the Community Aviation
Consultation Group to raise the matter for discussion. However, it is important to stress that

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the Community Aviation Consultation Group is not an arbitration or decision-making body.

Its feedback to the airport is not binding. It should not ordinarily be the Community Aviation
Consultation Group’s function to investigate individual complaints about the airport. Where
matters relating to identified individuals are considered, it is expected that appropriate
privacy safeguards are applied.

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ATTACHMENT

The White Paper

In the 2009 National Aviation Policy White Paper (‘the White Paper’), the Commonwealth
announced several improvements to the consultative requirements for airport operations and
development.

As noted, each airport is now required to establish a Community Aviation Consultation

Group to address planning and development issues and a range of other operational matters–
such as aircraft noise–which may affect airports’ relations with their neighbours.

Each airport will also be required to notify the community of all building applications on the
airport site, regardless of their scale or significance, by publishing them on the airport
website. This will require notification of all constructions and developments, including those
not captured by a Major Development Plan process.

Finally, the major capital city airports (Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Hobart, Adelaide,
Perth, Darwin and Canberra) will also be required to establish Planning Coordination Forums
with off-airport planning authorities (from the relevant local, state, and/or territory
governments, and the Commonwealth). Planning Coordination Forums will act as the vehicle
to lead constructive ongoing dialogue on matters such as Master Plans, the airport’s program
for proposed on-airport developments, regional planning initiatives, off-airport development
approvals, and significant ground transport developments that could affect the airport and its
transport connections.

All of these initiatives will work together with the existing public comment requirements for
Master Plans and Major Development Plans in order to promote improved transparency,
coordination and integration of planning occurring at the airport, as well as that occurring
around the airport.

These Guidelines should therefore be seen as an integrated part of this comprehensive airport
planning framework.

Community Aviation Consultation Groups - Overview

In relation to Community Aviation Consultation Groups, the White Paper stated that their
purpose would be to:

• provide a forum for the exchange of information and ideas between airport operators,
the community, governments, users and other relevant stakeholders;
• allow the concerns of interested parties to be raised and taken into account by airport
operators, thereby fostering a sense of collaboration, empowerment and transparency
in decision-making; and

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• contribute to community understanding of airport operations with the added potential

outcome of a wider acceptance of the airport’s operational needs and thus a greater
willingness to resolve potential conflicts.

The White Paper further stated that:

In recognition of the variety of community and operational contexts that different airports
operate within, each lessee company shall have the flexibility to define the scope and
membership of the Community Aviation Consultation Groups, as long as the following
core prescribed conditions are met:

• the chair is to be independent;

• a record of the outcomes of key discussions is to be published;
• a report on the group’s work is to be reviewed as part of the annual lease review;
and
• the activity is to be funded by airports.

In relation to the role of Community Aviation Consultation Groups, the White Paper stated:

It is important to recognise that Community Aviation Consultation Groups are for

consultation purposes only and are not decision-making bodies. While airports will be
expected to take the lead facilitation role, outcomes will depend on the goodwill of
community members and the airport alike. The primary purpose of the body is to ensure
that community views are effectively heard by the airport and to give members the
opportunity to obtain information about what is happening on-airport. The work of an
ongoing group of community representatives is likely to support an informed dialogue,
which is not always possible in one-off open forums. Meetings of the group would not
have to be open to the public at large, but groups are encouraged to hold public meetings
on major issues as necessary and to invite additional participation in meetings of the
group where it would assist with consideration of a particular issue.

In relation to the composition and membership of Community Aviation Consultation Groups,

the White Paper stated:

Some airports expressed the view that community consultation groups would work better
if other industry stakeholders, including airlines, Airservices Australia and the Civil
Aviation Safety Authority, were also represented. Airports would be responsible for
determining membership of the Groups and are encouraged to establish appropriate
consultation arrangements with other relevant industry stakeholders. In exercising this
freedom to select members, airports would be expected to ensure that a representative
cross-section of community interests would also be included.

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