Airlines

DUBAI LIMITS ITS FOOTPRINT

Dubai Airports is working towards making Concourse D — which will become the new home of more than 100 international airlines that fly to Dubai International when it opens in 2015 — as energy efficient and sustainable as possible in line with the aviation industry’s long-term aim of carbon neutral growth. Under the supervision of Dubai Aviation Engineering Projects (DAEP), the new building will implement several green initiatives that will reduce the environmental impact of the new facility. These include adopting recycling programmes during construction, the use of renewable energy as well as utilizing locally sourced and recycled building materials. For Dubai Airports and Dubai Aviation Engineering Projects the intention is to promote healthy, durable, affordable and environmentally sound practices in design, construction and eventual operation. Among the initiatives aimed at reducing the carbon footprint of Concourse D is an array of 192 solar panels measuring 450m2 to be erected on the roof of the building. This will have the dual benefit of generating power while keeping the building cool by reflecting sunlight. The solar array is expected to generate about 1.8% of the total power requirement of Concourse D. Construction of the new facility currently includes on-site recycling, thereby reducing the amount of waste being disposed of in landfills. Easily accessible areas have been provided for the collection and storage of non-hazardous materials including paper, corrugated cardboard, glass, plastic and metal. Recycled materials will also be used in the construction of the facility as well as regionally harvested or manufactured materials. DAEP will source at least 10% of its building material from within 800km of Dubai International and 20 per cent from recycled materials. Go to http://www.dubaiairports.ae for more.