Additional consultation Balanced Approach Schiphol

The Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management is currently going through the balanced approach procedure to reduce noise in the vicinity of Schiphol Airport.

Reason for the additional consultation

A package of measures was submitted to the European Commission last year. To do justice to both the ruling in the RBV case and the outcome of the talks with the European Commission, the package of measures will be supplemented by a number of new measures.

The Ministry considers it important that everyone can react to the adjustments. Therefore, an additional consultation has been opened.

From Friday 24 May to Friday 21 June 2024, you can leave your comments on the adjustments to the package of measures.

The consultation period has ended. It is not possible anymore to leave a comment.

Background

The ministry submitted a package of measures to the European Commission (EC) on 1 September 2023. The EC has raised several questions, notably whether the package's pros and cons are balanced and about the pace at which we want to reach our objective. The EC also stressed the importance of alternative measures to meet the noise abatement objective rather than a reduction in aircraft movements.

In addition, there has been a court ruling in the so-called ‘RBV case’. The ruling orders that the State must enforce laws and regulations within 12 months. This means that anticipatory non-enforcement (tolerated noise levels) must end within this period. In addition, the court states in the ruling's grounds that this must be accompanied by a better balance between the interests of local residents and Schiphol's importance for the Dutch economy.

To do justice to both the ruling in the RBV case and the outcome of the talks with the European Commission, the package of measures will be supplemented by a number of new measures. In addition, the measures will be phased in over a three-year period.

On which parts of the proposal is a response sought?

This consultation is in addition to the one that ran from 15 March 2023 to 15 June 2023.

You can now comment on the modified proposal as outlined in this consultation document. You are specifically asked to respond to the new elements of the proposal. This concerns:

The gradual introduction of the measures in three phases and the corresponding pace.
The new and adapted measures proposed to achieve the noise abatement objective.

The new package consists of the following measures:

Phase 1 - 2024

Quieter aircraft at night (between 23:00 - 07:00)

Phase 2 - 2025

Airport charges for noisy aircraft become more expensive (new)
Excluding the noisiest aircraft at night (new)
Less use of runways near densely populated areas
More aircraft replaced with new ones (new)
Fewer flights at night - maximum of 27,000 flights per year
Lower total number of flights - maximum between 460,000 and 470,000 flights per year

Phase 3 - 2026

Partial night-time closure or other night-time measures (new)

We invite you to specifically address phase 1 and phase 2 of the gradual approach in your response.

Please note:
Phase 3 provides insight into the intended follow-up process. A separate process will follow for this phase with a separate consultation at a later stage.

Your response

You can respond to the additional consultation until 21 June 2024 via the consultation website.

The consultation period has ended. It is not possible anymore to leave a comment.

This instruction guideline describes the steps that need to be taken to leave your response.

Digital information meeting

On 30 May, the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management organised a digital information meeting. During the meeting, the proposed measures and approach were explained and questions from the audience were answered.

Were you unable to attend the meeting or would you like to watch it again? Please click here for the recorded version.

What are the next steps?

The additional consultation provides the opportunity to respond to the proposed incremental approach and the adjusted measures compared to the 2023 consultation.

All responses received will be considered when deciding on a final package of measures. The chosen package of measures will be presented to the European Commission for advice with the intention of then implementing it and establishing it in regulations.