Article by Nicolas Bernard, Infrastructure Cluster Manager Operational Unit Aeronautical Areas, Paris CDG, Task Leader 4.3 OLGA
The OLGA projects, for hOlistic Green Airport, celebrated their first birthday last October. One of the projects developed by OLGA is the BiodiversIT project, carried out by CDGR, which takes a new turn at the end of the year.
First of all, let me remember our objectives!
The first one is to concatenate all data from biodiversity’s observation and knowledge, in order to better share, map, track, and promote it. The second major target is to improve and ease the tracking of the high-stakes species of our platforms by using current technologies (sensors and the development of dedicated AI algorithms).
From remarkable species to less desirable species such as Invasive Exotic Species, our goal is the same: to know them, to monitor them, to fight or to favour them. Some sorts of plants, which are attractive for the avifauna, remain a major point of attention to ensure the safety of aeronautics, which is the DNA of Aircraft Process. The involvement of ECP (Department of Engineering), confirms a common interest in the process and encourages sharing.
Furthermore, the support of DGDI (Department of Innovation) in the research for the right technology allows us to make significant progress on the project at the end of the year. The next Steering Committee in Brussels in March 2023 will be the opportunity to present the progress of our work to all our partners and to unveil our mobile camera prototype evolving on CDG aircraft’s ground traffic, for biodiversity!
I take advantage of these few words to wish you all a happy holiday season!
WHO’S WHO ?
Axel DOUAILLY
Groupe ADP, EPCO-R
“During a work carried out in 2017 on the enhancement of the landscape in Parisian airports and through the establishment of development, landscape, and biodiversity blueprints, the environment, nature, and the living environment are at the heart of my thoughts.
This work has made it possible to better understand our ecological wealth, to appreciate the indices of biodiversity, and to federate around environmental themes.
Based on this experience, I also contribute locally to improve the living environment by undertaking the revision of a Local Urban Planning document.”
My steering and facilitation role of the Olga WP 4.3 working group enables me to contribute to advancing the objectives of the project, whose European scope will allow us to go beyond the local scale.
This work provides the opportunity to involve high-quality partners and collaborators, who, through this work, will contribute to the qualitative development of airports while reconciling the ecological issues that have become prevalent. Associating wildlife and its constraints in the aeronautical sector is a complex but feasible affair, it requires technicality, dialogue, and collaboration in order to unite.
Beyond the OLGA project, some of my missions are related to the biodiversity impact mitigation strategy in projects and the implementation of environmental prescriptions in the operational phase.
Arnaud MASSON
C2C, Vinci energies
“I have developed a very strong personal connection to nature through the frequent practice of sport in this environment. Skiing, cycling, running, swimming in open water, whatever the shape, I take great pleasure in evolving in unspoiled environments.”
C2C was contacted by Groupe ADP to propose a solution under "Proof Of Concept 2022". Our role as a solution integrator in video protection was to develop a system capable of making shots outdoors without a power supply. We've developed a self-contained box with a non-polluting methanol battery that powers two cameras in very high resolution. After a very rich and rewarding first part of the project, we now want to evolve the technology to match as much as possible the requirements of the next steps.
Thanks to ADP for trusting us in this achievement.
Philippe BEROS
TRANS-FAIRE, Biodiversity Consultant
“Interest in nature has emerged from childhood, first through bird watching. This was followed by NGO activities and dedicated studies and culminated in the “passion job” that I have practiced for decades. As CEO of TRANS-FAIRE, the pleasure of naturalist discovery remains intact. Also a bit of a geek, I’m passionate about environmental and urban data analysis.”
In association with Champ-Libre, TRANS-FAIRE has been the Biodiversity Expert of Groupe ADP for several years. We produced the development, landscape, and biodiversity blueprints of the 3 Parisian airports: Charles de Gaule, Orly, and Le Bourget. We support the teams in the implementation of the Biodiversity impact mitigation sequence for aeronautical or real estate development projects. As part of BiodiversIT, we bring our naturalistic expertise and our knowledge of CDG and its natural resources.
We are also pleased to provide support for the animation of the system, through the coordination of working groups, the co-production of deliverables, or the preparation of the newsletter that you have in front of you.
WORK IN PROGRESS
PROOF OF CONCEPT 2022
The observations of biodiversity by cameras have begun on the Olivettes natural site which is a natural area managed by the DISTRICT of Seine-et-Marne in the east of Paris.
Under POC 2022, C2C installed very high-definition cameras. The goal is to check in real conditions what it is possible to collect and monitor in terms of plant biodiversity. We have a double coverage: a PTZ- type mobile camera with an optical zoom and a very high-definition fixed camera. The following diagram shows the system in place.
The first installation is fixed and has delivered its first images. Afterward, tests will be carried out with the camera box in an ADP pickup. We will thus be in the conditions closest to those encountered at Paris CDG airport.
A site visit of TRANS-FAIRE’s ecologists will be made, to compare the capture to the visual observation.
Under these conditions, everything will be ready in the spring to track the growth of vegetation and detect species that may represent an ecological or aeronautical issue for airports.
Image analysis using algorithms will be done by UPEC, our academic partner, based in Créteil, next to Paris.
WORKING GROUPS
Several working groups are operating in the framework of the BiodiversIT project’s deployment. Depending on the topic, each of the stakeholders brings his skills to one or other of the meetings. Topics include organization, communication, data, environmental or security issues, and GIS. Each working group has the operational goal of producing deliverables. Little by little, the project library is created and will allow sharing and replication between airports.
BIODIVERSITY DATA
CDG Airport’s field teams have been using a tablet system since autumn 2021, to collect biodiversity data on a daily basis. The data currently collected are mainly bird-related, however, the spectrum of data collected will be gradually extended to include natural habitats and flora. On its side, the IT Services’ Directorate coordinates the establishment of a GIS, enabling the collection, processing, and sharing of this data. A range of tools will be strengthened in the next months.