The Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority (RTAA) has a long history of working with the surrounding communities in addressing airport noise issues.  In 1979, the RTAA completed its first comprehensive noise study for the Reno-Tahoe International Airport (RTIA) which is referred to as the Airport Noise Control and Land Use Compatibility (ANCLUC) Study.  Following this effort, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) created the Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR) Part 150 Noise Compatibility program in 1984.  Participation on the part of airports in the FAR Part 150 program is voluntary and for those that do participate additional funding is made available.  Because of the RTIA's in-town location and the availability of additional funding to benefit the communities, the RTAA initiated its first FAR Part 150 Noise Compatibility Study in 1989 and it was approved by the FAA in 1991.  An update to the FAR Part 150 study was initiated in 2000.  The final study was approved by the FAA in 2004.

The FAR Part 150 Noise Compatibility Study provides both operational and land use recommendations for reducing or eliminating noise impacts around Reno-Tahoe International Airport.  The following documents are excerpts from the most recent FAR Part 150 Study and provide an overview of the Noise Exposure Maps and the recommendations to manage the noise impacts at Reno-Tahoe International.

To view these reference pages from the updated FAR Part 150 Noise Compatibility Study, use the following links:

• Chapter 4 – Noise Impacts
• Chapter 5 – Noise Abatement Alternatives
• Exhibit 4C – 2000 Aircraft Noise Exposure with Land Use
• Exhibit 4D – 2005 Aircraft Noise Exposure with Land Use
• Exhibit 4E – 2010 Aircraft Noise Exposure with Land Use
• Exhibit 5G – Evaluate Preferential Runway Use for Noise Abatement

The following documents provide additional information regarding runway utilization and airport access restrictions:

• To view the Runway Utilization Discussion Paper Click Here.
• To view the Airport Access Restrictions Discussion Paper, Click Here.
• To view the Airport Access Restrictions reference pages from the updated FAR Part 150 Noise Compatibility Study, Click Here.

Noise Complaints

To register a noise complaint, please call the Noise Complaint Hotline at 775-328-6468.  The Hotline is available 24 hours a day to record complaints.  It is also now possible to register noise complaints online using the WebTrak feature of the RTAA's new Airport Noise and Operations Monitoring System (ANOMS).  To register a noise complaint online Click Here.  All recorded noise complaints are stored in a database and reported to the Airport Noise Advisory Panel on a quarterly basis.

Airport Noise & Operations Monitoring System
Thanks to a new Airport Noise and Operations Monitoring System (ANOMS), the community is able to access near real-time flight tracking data from /admin/www.renoairport.com and report noise complaints on-line.  The ANOMS automatically matches noise complaints with aircraft operations and noise events.   

In 2004, the airport accepted a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airport Improvement Program (AIP) grant in the amount of $1,875,000 for the installation of the new Airport Noise and Operations Monitoring System (ANOMS), which became available to the public on March 23, 2010.  

The new ANOMS collects extensive information on aircraft operations including aircraft type, flight tracks, runway use, approach and departure profiles, and activity levels.  In addition, the ANOMS includes fourteen noise monitors permanently placed in locations throughout the valley which will collect long-term noise data in the communities surrounding the airport.  Portable noise monitors can supplement the fixed monitors and provide backup for maintenance. 

Click Here to Track & Report Airport Noise

For more information about the Airport Authority's Airport Noise and Operations Monitoring System, please contact Rick Miller, Airport Noise Analyst, at noise.monitoring@renoairport.com. 

Residential Sound Insulation Program
The Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority is committed to being a good neighbor to the surrounding community. The residential sound insulation program is an outstanding example of the airport’s efforts to blend its operations with the community while maintaining a high quality of life for the airport’s neighbors.

There are over 5,400 residential units north and south of the Reno-Tahoe International Airport eligible for the program with over 3,500 of these units having already been treated.  To date, over $53 million has been spent insulating homes within the eligible area with an average design and construction cost per home of $15,000.  There is no cost to the home owner.     

The Airport Authority has been receiving Airport Improvement Program (AIP) grant funding from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for the purpose of sound insulating homes in communities neighboring Reno-Tahoe International Airport each year dating back to 1994.  The Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority is eligible to receive these funds because of the Airport Authority’s participation in the voluntary Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR) Part 150 Noise Compatibility Program that identified specific areas of noise exposure to homes located primarily to the north and south of the airport in Sparks, Reno, and unincorporated Washoe County. 

To be eligible for the residential sound insulation program, the home must have been built prior to October 1, 1998, be used for residential purposes, and fall within the FAA-approved 65 decibel DNL (Day Night Average Level) Noise Exposure area identified in the Part 150 program.  Commercial properties are not eligible. 

If you would like more information about the Airport Authority’s residential sound insulation program, please contact Trish Tucker, Manager of Airport Noise Program, at noise.abatement@renoairport.com.

Airport Noise Advisory Panel
The Airport Noise Advisory Panel (ANAP), has been meeting regularly since January 1981 in order to assist the Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority Board of Trustees in dealing with issues relating to airport noise.  ANAP and its By-Laws were formally established by the Board of Trustees by Resolution No. 110 on June 28, 1984. 

Click here for the current By-Laws. 

The purpose of ANAP is to:

• Receive and assess information on airport noise issues
• Assist in coordination between land use activities and airport activities
• Promote greater communication regarding airport related noise among the various public bodies, agencies, and commissions
• Make advisory recommendations to the Airport Authority’s Board of Trustees regarding new and existing programs and approaches to noise abatement

ANAP consists of 25 members; each member’s initial term is two years in length and each may be reappointed for additional two-year terms.  ANAP is led by a Panel-elected Chair and Vice-Chair.  Elections are held during the first meeting of each calendar year.  Elected terms last one year; elected officers may be re-elected for one additional term in each position.  Citizen representatives are appointed by their individual governing bodies with at least one representative having no affiliation with the government entity through employment or elective office.

Current ANAP representation:

City of Reno

City of Sparks

County of Washoe

Other

Meetings are held on a quarterly basis - on the second Thursday of the third month at 6:00 p.m. and are typically held in the Administrative Offices of the Reno-Tahoe International Airport (second level of the terminal building). Meetings are open to the public.  Parking will be validated.

Click here for the 2012 Schedule of Quarterly Meetings.

Click here to download the First Quarter 2012 Meeting Presentation.

The agenda and PowerPoint presentation for the next upcoming meeting will be posted no later than two weeks prior to the meeting.  Minutes of previous meetings are posted after approval by the Panel.

If you would like to be added to the mailing list to receive a hard copy of the agenda for ANAP meetings or have questions about ANAP, please contact Trish Tucker, Manager of Airport Noise Program at noise.abatement@renoairport.com.

ANAP members can be contacted care of:
Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority
Planning Department
P.O. Box 12490
Reno, Nevada 89510-2490

Environmental Programs

The Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority (RTAA) is committed to building and operating sustainable aviation facilities that protect the natural environment to the maximum extent feasible.  The RTAA's environmental programs seek to continually improve environmental practices, by encouraging environmental stewardship at all levels within the organization.

The Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority has established an in-house environmental committee with participation from all departments to help encourage environmental awareness, increase recycling efforts, and promote pollution, waste and energy reductions at Reno-Tahoe International and Reno-Stead Airports.

Environmental Management System
The Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority believes that a healthy natural environment plays a crucial role in the strength of our economy and our quality of life, and is essential for the sustainability of the aviation industry.  The RTAA Board of Trustees has passed a resolution highlighting the airport's commitment to the environment and since 2008, an Environmental Management System (EMS) has been incorporated into the RTAA's daily practices.  Some of the successful components of the EMS in 2010 included a terminal wide recycling program at Reno-Tahoe International Airport which diverted from landfills more than 10 percent of the airport waste stream, an office supply reduction and green purchasing policy which reduced overall paper usage by 9 percent, and an asphalt/concrete deconstruction and re-use program for construction projects which resulted in a 100 percent re-use of demolished pavement.

Click here for the RTAA's Environmental Policy Statement.

Energy Conservation in Action
The Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority (RTAA) is committed to improving and investing in more energy efficient facilities to reduce overall energy consumption.

In early 2011, the RTAA activated a 135 kW solar photovoltaic system adjacent to the Reno-Tahoe International Airport's Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF) facility.  The solar system will reduce the annual purchased electricity usage by approximately 260,000 kW hours and is expected to completely offset the ARFF facility's electrical usage (a cost of approximately $30,000 annually.)

Other recent improvement projects include numerous retrofit and replacement lighting projects.  On the airfield, approximately 1,100 taxiway lights, including 920 edge lights, were replaced with energy efficient light-emitting (LED) fixtures as part of the 2010 Airfield Lighting Systems Upgrade Project (a savings of approximately 77,000 kW hours and $10,000 annually).  The multi-year lighting fixture retrofit project which began on the first and second floors of the public parking garage has changed midstream to incorporate even greater energy efficient LED technology for future retrofitting.  LED retrofitting on the third floor of the parking garage will be complete in 2011.  In 2010, LED installations were completed in the terminal building in the new baggage handling service area and ticket lobby as part of the Airport Baggage Check-In Project.  The remaining areas (e.g. baggage claim, main lobby, passenger boarding bridges, lower level concourse and connector drive-through areas) will receive LED retrofits during future phased work.  The garage lighting upgrade project has resulted in an annual energy reduction of 25 percent (100,000 kW hours annually) and a cost savings of approximately $77,000 annually.  Additionally, the airport's chiller and boiler replacement projects have also resulted in a considerable reduction in energy consumption yielding cost savings totaling approximately $200,000 annually.

In an effort to continually improve, the RTAA is currently investigating the viability of more energy efficient upgrades to the lighting and mechanical systems in the passenger terminal building.  In addition, the RTAA is working on a number of different ways to generate and utilize renewable (geothermal and additional solar) sources of energy to offset existing supply needs.

Stead Solvent Site
Another great example of the  RTAA's proactive environmental initiatives is how the RTAA is dealing with what is known as the Stead Solvent Site.  In cooperation with the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP), the remediation activities and environmental clean up of the Stead Solvent Site utilizes state-of-the-art equipment to remove contamination from the groundwater and soil.  RTAA is leading this multi-party effort which includes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Lear Entities, and the City of Reno.  Groundwater pumping is also used to control and prevent migration of the contamination.  The process will take time but progress is being made.  The treatment system has been operating since March 2005 and approximately $5.1 million is committed to the clean up effort.

In addition to the pump system, the Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority is also employing a natural remediation technique by planting numerous trees in the affected area.  These trees act as a natural filtration system, drawing out contaminated groundwater.

The RTAA recently received national attention for it's remediation efforts on this project as the recipient of the 2009 Airports Council International - North America (ACI-NA) Environmental Achievement - Mitigation award.

For more information, go to NDEP’s website at ndep.nv.gov/bca/stead05.htm.