Cape Town airport reaches milestone in environmental approval for new runway

Cape Town International Airport (CTIA), which belongs to the State-owned Airports Company South Africa (Acsa), has received authorisation from the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) to proceed with its planned runway realignment and other necessary infrastructural developments. Acsa announced this on Tuesday. “We are indeed pleased to have reached this milestone within the environmental assessment process,” affirmed CTIA GM Deon Cloete. “It has required a great deal of planning and continuing engagement with communities to get to this point.” To date, the process has involved almost four years of planning, assessment and significant public consultation. The DEA’s authorisation covers both the realignment of, and extensions to, the runway, plus the required new taxi-ways and aircraft parking stands. “This runway project is not only about the growth of the airport, it’s about unlocking the growth potential of Cape Town and the Western Cape and we are pleased to be able to further contribute to the development of the region,” he pointed out.