Developing a System for the Prediction and Management of Aircraft Deicing/Anti-icing Fluids Concentrations in Airport Effluents

Abstract

Applications of aircraft deicing/anti-icing fluids (AD/AF’s) are necessary for safe flight operations during winter storms. However, these compounds have been detected in both ground and surface waters, and field observations have demonstrated the detrimental effects of introducing such substances into the environment. Those who manage the application of these compounds are subject to contradictory, sometimes mutually exclusive, regulations. At approximately 50% of those airports where deicing/antiicing operations occur, the only means of limiting AD/AF contamination of surface and ground waters while ensuring adequate safety is the cancellation of flights. Decisions made in this dichotomous regulatory environment are often predicated on the costs associated with limiting contaminated effluent discharges. The purpose of this paper is to propose the means to facilitate the decision making process with respect to AD/AF applications and subsequent stormwater discharges by suggesting an initial design paradigm for the development of a spatial decision support system (SDSS) with which managers can model the mechanisms by which aircraft deicing/anti-icing fluids enter surface waters as pollutants. Using the proposed SDSS to model AD/AF effluents, decision makers could better estimate those costs associated with exceeding regulatory guidelines. Further, the ability to generate outcomes within the context of this economic/environmental quid pro quo will provide the manager a range of options with which to make determinations regarding the costs and corresponding implications of the application of AD/AF’s. Thus, the SDSS would provide the means with which to explore mitigation opportunities and to reduce the costs of discharging wastewaters containing deicing/anti-icing chemicals.