BY RHENJIE MARIE CALANTAS
ILOILO – The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) recently awarded Iloilo Airport its official International Organization for Standardization (ISO 14001:2015) Certification for Environmental Management System, the first in the country.
Representatives from the European Aviation Safety Agency, a certification body from Bureau Veritas, CAAP officials, and Iloilo province government officials were present during the awarding ceremony held at the airport’s departure area in Cabatuan town on Sept. 14.
ISO 14001 sets out the criteria for an Environmental Management System, which maps out a framework that a company or organization can follow. It can assure company management, employees, and external stakeholders that environmental impact is being measured and improved.
Organizations and companies using the standard improve resource efficiency, reduce waste, drive down costs, gain a competitive advantage and even increase stakeholder and customer trust.
Manuela Luisa Palma, airport manager, told Panay News the feat resulted from collaborative efforts.
“Kung baga kami ang model of all the airports within the Philippines. Kami ang pioneer, so it’s been a multitask for everybody. We are thankful to all our stakeholders, attached government agencies, the Manila team and CAAP employees, and our environmental management team who worked hard to have this certification,” Palma added.
Palma also enjoined passengers to make a positive environmental impact.
Iloilo Airport began its journey for accreditation in July 2020 and went through two audit stages.
The ISO certification will expire on May 31, 2026.
CAAP Director General Captain Manuel Antonio Tamayo said he will share Iloilo Airport’s achievement in the coming Asia Pacific Director General Civil Aviation Summit next year, which will be hosted by the Philippines.
Aside from the ISO 14001:2015 Environmental Management System, the airport is also looking to obtain the Safety Management System Certification and the ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management System.
Iloilo Airport is the first CAAP-operated airport in the Philippines./PN
