At San Diego International Airport (SAN), sustainability is a core value. As a leader in environmental responsibility, the Airport Authority works to minimize impacts through programs focused on compliance, resource protection, and long-term planning. SAN publishes an annual ESG Report highlighting sustainability efforts, DEI goals, and community impact.
The San Diego County Regional Airport Authority’s Sustainability Management Program provides a framework for advancing and measuring environmental progress across seven focus areas: biodiversity, carbon neutrality, clean transportation, climate resilience, strategic energy, water stewardship, zero waste. Each plan includes goals and strategies the Airport Authority aims to achieve by 2035.
The Sustainability Management Program helps guide long-term planning and decision-making while balancing environmental, financial, and social responsibilities.
The Authority’s vision for plant and wildlife stewardship includes habitat management for the endangered California Least Tern, reduced biocide use through Integrated Pest Management, and the selection of drought-tolerant plants for xeriscaping.
The Authority has a robust strategy for managing air quality and greenhouse gas emissions and provides a framework for the airport to achieve carbon neutrality under the ACI Airport Carbon Accreditation program.
The Authority manages various ground transportation emission sources, including all vehicles and equipment at the airport owned and operated by the Authority, passengers, and 3rd parties.
The Authority ensures business continuity amid future climate conditions by building on existing efforts, from storm drainage improvements to regional collaboration on coastal flood protection, aiming for long-term climate resilience beyond regulatory compliance.
The Authority implements energy resilience strategies aligned with airport operations and development including energy efficiency, conservation, on-site generation and storage, energy monitoring, and stakeholder engagement.
The Authority manages water resources amid passenger growth, development, and a changing climate through water conservation, protection, and flood-risk mitigation.
The Authority aims to reduce waste generation and increasing diversion from the landfill through sustainable materials management, infrastructure, education, metrics, and leadership.
The San Diego County Regional Airport Authority is proud to share 2024 ESG Supplement Report.
Since 2011, the Airport Authority has published an annual sustainability report, and for the 2022 report, began incorporating Diversity, Equity and Inclusion goals. In 2023, the Airport Authority embraced efforts by the airport industry to coalesce around a common reporting framework and published the first ESG Report.
The Airport Authority will publish a full ESG report on a biennial basis. The 2024 ESG Supplement is published in the interim year to provide continued transparency into our impact and financial metrics.
We believe that environmental stewardship, social responsibility, and responsible governance are integral to our success. Our ESG report sets forth a framework for sharing our progress and challenges in those areas.
At the Airport Authority, our purpose is to create an exceptional airport experience for the community and the world. In the ESG Report, we hold ourselves accountable to that vision.
ESG Reports
2024 ESG Report
2023 ESG Report
Sustainability Reports
2022-2023_Sustainability_Report
2021_Sustainability_Report
2020_Sustainability_Report
2019_Sustainability_Report
2018_Sustainability_Report
2017_Sustainability_Report
2016_Sustainability_Report
2014-2015_Sustainability_Report
2013_Sustainability_Report
2012_Sustainability_Report
Outlines results of annual reinspections of Authority-owned buildings to evaluate locations and condition of known and suspected asbestos-containing material (ACM). The Authority provides informational notices to employees, tenants, and contractors working in Authority-owned buildings regarding presence, location and condition of ACM.
Whenever a renovation project is proposed, an additional evaluation is conducted and project-specific notices are provided as necessary to employees and tenants in the vicinity of the work.
The Authority’s Excavated Soil Management Plan (ESMP) provides construction project managers and contractors with the guidance and procedures to appropriately handle, manage and dispose of impacted soil, impacted debris (rock/asphalt/concrete mixed with impacted soil), and burn ash encountered during excavation activities at the San Diego International Airport.
To discuss the applicability of these requirements to your project, please call 619-400-2782 or email the Environmental Affairs department at [email protected].
The Authority’s Procurement Department aims to promote sustainability by prioritizing services and products that balance fiscal responsibility with environmental stewardship. This includes reducing toxicity, conserving energy and water, reusing materials, enhancing durability, conserving natural resources, and maximizing recyclability and recycled content.
The Sustainable Statement & Resource Guide is available here.
For more information or to offer feedback on environmentally preferable purchasing, please contact us at 619.400.2782 or [email protected].
Air Quality Management
As San Diego International Airport continues to meet the air travel demands of a growing region, the impacts of growth and development have been identified and analyzed in various studies. In an effort to continue this type of analysis and a proactive approach, an Air Quality Management Plan (AQMP) has been prepared by the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority (Airport Authority) for San Diego International Airport. The AQMP assists the Airport Authority in meeting local, state and federal air quality regulations and contributes valuable data and analysis to the San Diego region as existing and future air quality compliance measures are addressed.
The San Diego County Regional Airport Authority Board approved the AQMP on December 3, 2009, as shown in the following resolution:
Click here to view the Ground Transportation Vehicle Conversion Incentive-Based Program, adopted by the Airport Authority Board on March 4, 2010.
2024 Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory
The Airport Authority has been conducting annual greenhouse gas emissions inventories since 2015. Based on 2024 emissions data, San Diego International Airport (SDIA) has maintained Level 4+ (“Transition”) in terms of Airport-controlled emissions via Airports Council International’s Airport Carbon Accreditation (ACA) program.
The third-party verified ACA program is a framework that helps airports identify, manage, and ultimately reduce their carbon emissions while also effectively partnering with its business partners – such as airlines, concessions, and ground transportation operators – to lower their emissions at the Airport. In addition to reducing Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions year-over-year, the Airport Authority purchased carbon offsets to mitigate the metric tons of greenhouse gases that represent SDIA’s 2024 Scope 1, 2, and Staff Business Travel.
Alternative Fuel Vehicles and Vehicle Age Agreement
As part of CEQA mitigation for the proposed redevelopment of SAN’s Terminal 1, the Airport Authority and airlines have committed to converting approximately 80% of GSE to alternative fuels by 2024. The binding “Alternative Fuel Vehicles and Vehicle Age Agreement” (“Agreement”) between the Airport Authority, Airlines, and 3rd party ground handlers requires conversion of:
View the Agreement here.
Stormwater Management
San Diego International Airport is responsible for administering approximately 661 acres of public lands on the shore of San Diego Bay. The Storm Water Management Plan is a major element of the Airport’s commitment to preventing, eliminating, and reducing the discharge of polluted storm water into the surrounding environment and San Diego Bay. The Stormwater Management Plan is directed at those activities of the Airport Authority itself, as well as those of the airlines and other airport tenants, that have the potential to cause stormwater pollution.
The Storm Water Management Plan is designed to control the pollutants generated by everyday operation of the airport, including: trash, litter and debris; petroleum products that might leak from aircraft and motor vehicles; heavy metals potentially contained in the dust from brake pads, rubber tires, engine exhaust; and the fertilizers and pesticides used to maintain the airport’s landscape and facilities. See below for access to a copy of the Storm Water Management Plan.
The Environmental Affairs Department is responsible for ensuring implementation of the Storm Water Management Plan. The Environmental Affairs Department also works with the Airport Facilities Maintenance Department and the Facilities Development Department to make sure that the airport stormwater conveyance system is clean and operational. The Environmental Affairs Department is responsible for monitoring the quality of stormwater runoff from the Airport. In addition, the Department is responsible for the preparation of the Annual Reports.
Development and Construction
Recently, the regulations and permits related to stormwater management and control have required that best management practices (BMPs) be designed into new development and redevelopment projects. Throughout San Diego County, new development and redevelopment projects of particular types and sizes must be designed in accordance with what are known of locally as the “BMP Design Manuals” requirements. At the San Diego International Airport, Airport Authority and tenant projects that meet the project type and size criteria must be developed in accordance with the Airport Authority’s BMP Design Manual.
Excavated Soil Management Plan
The Authority’s Excavated Soil Management Plan (ESMP) has been developed to provide construction project managers and contractors with the guidance and procedures to appropriately handle, manage and dispose of impacted soil, impacted debris (rock/asphalt/concrete mixed with impacted soil), and burn ash encountered during excavation activities at the San Diego International Airport.
To discuss the applicability of these requirements to your project, please call 619-400-2782 or email the Environmental Affairs department at [email protected].
Watershed Issues
Federal and state stormwater regulations have recently begun to focus on fostering more coordinated efforts among permitted entities to control regional impacts on local water bodies. Sitting on the shore of San Diego Bay, with stormwater runoff from the San Diego International Airport flowing into the Bay, the Airport Authority is working with the Port of San Diego, the County of San Diego, and the cities of Chula Vista, Coronado, Imperial Beach, La Mesa, Lemon Grove, National City, and San Diego to control the stormwater pollutants being generated daily within the 415 square mile San Diego Bay watershed. For additional information on these regional efforts, please visit the Project Clean Water web page for the San Diego Bay watershed.
The Industrial Activities Annual Report is submitted by July 1 of each year and describes the activities conducted to control stormwater discharges associated with industrial activities. The Municipal Activities Annual Report is submitted by January 31 of each year and describes the activities conducted to control stormwater discharges associated with municipal activities.
On January 1, 2003, the Authority became the new owner and operator of SDIA, a role previously held by the Port of San Diego. Due to this transfer of responsibility, the Airport Authority was required to obtain it’s own coverage under the appropriate permits and prepare the associated documentation required as part of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program of the Clean Water Act.
As a Responsible Party within the San Diego Bay Watershed, the Airport Authority works toward improved water quality in MS4 discharges and receiving waters. Read more in The San Diego Bay Watershed Water Quality Improvement Plan.
Over-Irrigation Prohibition
If you spot any landscape runoff or broken sprinklers at SAN, please contact us ASAP with the incident location at 619-400-2710.
In compliance with the Regional MS4 Permit (AKA the “Municipal Stormwater Permit”), the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority prohibits over-irrigation discharges into storm drains. Over-irrigation has been found to be a source of pollutants such as nutrients, bacteria, pesticides and sediment and therefore, excessive landscape irrigation is prohibited on the airport campus. Additionally, the Authority values the conservation and protection of water as a resource. Whether the region is in a formal state of drought or not, the Authority follows the lead of our local water supply agency (the City of San Diego) and avoids wasteful practices, like over-irrigation.
The Authority works to prevent over-irrigation and the discharge of pollutants from over-irrigation in many ways. First, we don’t water when we don’t have to. The airport’s state-of-the-art weather track system collects and analyzes data from multiple weather stations to determine watering needs. The system shuts off irrigation when we have rainfall. This save approximately 9 million gallons of water in unnecessary irrigation each year and prevents us from overwatering. Second, the Authority and the Facilities Maintenance Department (FMD) have designated personnel to ensure our irrigation system is working properly. The certified irrigation technician performs inspections throughout the day to assure all systems are functioning as designed and there is no over-irrigation. Facilities Maintenance staff are available 24/7 to respond to over-irrigation incidents. If there is an incident involving excess water that cannot be easily fixed, FMD staff will shut down the entire system within an hour. FMD flags all issues and performs correct actions within 12-24 hours. Third, the Authority embraces xeriscaping, or drought-tolerant landscaping, and drip irrigation watering systems that both cut down on water usage and prevent the likelihood and occurrences of over-irrigation.
The Airport Authority engages employees, tenants, and contractors to prevent and report over-irrigation. The Communication Center, Airport Operations, Facilities Management, Planning and Environmental Affairs are trained to respond to over-irrigation. Employees and the public can report over-irrigation incidents to our Communication Center or to Environmental Affairs. Airport employees and Authority staff are informed of the over-irrigation prohibition at outreach events, all-hands meetings, and through email and tenant information notices. We encourage our employees, tenants, contractors, and the public to contact us if you spot over-irrigation on Airport premises.
Please contact us with the incident location by calling 619-400-2710 or filling out an over-irrigation contact us form.
FOD Management
Proper FOD (foreign object debris) management ensures that debris on the airfield does not enter our storm drains and prevents stormwater pollution. The Airport Authority’s FOD Management Plan details policies and measures put in place to ensure FOD-free operations at the San Diego International Airport. The plan outlines the practices implemented by the Airport Authority and its tenants, contractors, and subcontractors to effectively prevent and manage FOD. While FOD is a significant airfield safety and efficiency concern—proper FOD management on our airfield also supports the Authority’s extensive stormwater management program. For the most recent version of the Plan, please click here.
Stormwater GIS Data
The Airport Authority maintains Geographic Information System (GIS) layers and files used to maintain MS4 maps in compliance with Provisions E.2.b.(1), E.3.e.2.(a), E.4.b.(1), E.5.a, and F.4 of the MS4 Permit. The information generated and maintained includes GIS data layers and shapefiles related to the following can be found below:
Complete SWMP
Appendix B
Industrial Annual Reports
Water Quality Equivalency Credit Trading Framework
The Airport Authority works diligently to protect the natural resources on and around the airport facilities and in the surrounding community. The Airport Authority is proud to provide a protected habitat for the endangered California least tern, a migrating seabird that finds nesting opportunities along the southeastern property line of the airport. The Airport Authority also seeks to prevent, eliminate, and minimize the impacts of stormwater runoff on eel grass beds that grow in San Diego Bay near the storm drain outfalls.
The San Diego International Airport is home to the California least tern (Sterna antillarum browni, “CLT”), a federally listed endangered seabird species. The airport provides the CLT with nesting habitat and easy access to foraging opportunities in nearby San Diego Bay. There are several other nesting areas around San Diego Bay, and the Airport Authority works cooperatively with the US Fish & Wildlife Service, the Port of San Diego, the US Navy to protect the CLT and its habitat. Click here to learn more about the CLT.
The Airport Authority continues to work with the Port of San Diego and the San Diego Zoological Society’s Center for Reproduction of Endangered Species (CRES) to monitor the CLT on the Airport Authority’s properties. Click here for more information.
San Diego International Airport (SAN) provides seamless travel experiences with nonstop flights to destinations worldwide, offering convenient services and amenities for all travelers.
© 2025 San Diego County Regional Airport Authority. All rights reserved.
2025-06-24
DFW to SAN
3:14 PM
Frontier #1425
Arriving at Gate 18
