Working closely with governmental partners from the State of Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), DFW has earned top honours for its commitment and contribution to reducing emissions and cutting its energy consumption, as well as for its management of its land mass.

DFW has developed a sustainability program that impacts every department at the airport with major initiatives, including the conversion of 94% of DFW's fleet of vehicles to clean-burning fuels such as Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) and biodiesel, which has dramatically lowered airport vehicle emissions.

A major retrofit of Energy Plaza, DFW's central heating and cooling plant, was completed in 2005, significantly lowering the airport's energy consumption, even while the airport was adding a brand new international terminal.

Lighting retrofits throughout the airport's many buildings, have further reduced energy consumption while improving the quality of the indoor environment.

Recycling 978 tonnes of materials every year, from consumer recyclables such as cardboard, paper and plastic, to heavy industrial materials such as concrete, insulation and roofing materials, has contributed towards new construction.

The Continuous Commissioning Program for DFW buildings, rigorously evaluates and optimises a building's energy systems to suit its actual conditions and requirements.

The airport's green efforts have resulted in energy savings, now calculated in tens of millions of dollars, and those numbers are increasing as DFW's sustainability effort expands.

"We're finding that our green efforts are not only the right thing to do, but in almost every case, the smart thing to do budget-wise," says Jim Crites, executive vice president of operations at DFW. "We are saving millions, reducing our footprint, and leaving our corner of the world a better place, and many other airports are visiting us to see what they can learn from our achievements."

The airport's work in a wide range of sustainability programmes earned it a place on the EPA's National Environmental Performance Track, a designation for the top environmental management programs in the United States, as well as a Clean Texas Platinum award from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
 
DFW was also recognised in 2009 as an EPA Green Power Partner, for becoming a top purchaser of electricity from renewable sources. More than 17% of DFW's electricity comes from wind power sources, which is generated with zero emissions.

Among the projects DFW developed and/or tested are perimeter taxiways built around arrival and departure runways to eliminate the need for runway crossings and the chances of a runway incursion. Runway status lights give an added layer of communication to pilots.

The installation of Airport Surface Detection Equipment-Model X (ASDE-X) and Area Navigation RNAV will make air traffic control more efficient, reducing emissions and congestion.

The airfield safety initiatives, tested by DFW in cooperation with the FAA, have become models of operational excellence that are being studied by airports worldwide.

Any successful model of the airport city concept will primarily use its resources to develop land for as many applicable uses as possible. The concept of using land not only for aircraft operations and economic development, but also for developing new frontiers in sustainability and airfield safety, makes DFW unique among the world's airports.

"We look forward to any and every opportunity to show our peers and colleagues the work currently underway and how it may benefit their airports and communities," says Fegan.

The commitment at DFW to new and better ways of operating as an airport, as a regional partner, and as a good neighbour, promises to continue well into the 21st century.