Chattanooga Airport receives LEED certification
February 29, 2012, 03:21 pm
The Chattanooga Airport's new energy-efficient corporate flight center terminal facility recently received platinum certification from the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design green building certification program. The 9,000-square-foot terminal is the only aviation terminal in the world to receive platinum certification, the highest possible level of energy and environmental performance.
"This remarkable achievement reflects the Chattanooga Airport's belief that sustainability is more than a simple responsibility to the environment," said Dan Jacobson, Chairman of the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport Authority (CMAA). "Sustainability represents our civic duty to improve the quality of life for the community in which we all live, work and play."
To receive the LEED certification, the corporate terminal installed 4,000 solar panels - to generate more than a megawatt of clean power every year - and selected furniture from regional sources to reduce pollution during transport. Airport leaders also encouraged employees and clients to use alternative transportation such as bikes and low-emission vehicles, and ensured 95 percent of all construction waste was recycled. In addition, landscaping throughout the airport campus was revisited to make sure it was composed of indigenous plants that do not need water to stay hydrated.
Also working to lower emissions and energy consumption in the field of aviation, the Research Council's U.K. Energy Program recently reported that energy can be harnessed from the wheel rotation of landing gear to generate electricity. By leveraging this energy source, airlines could reduce their planes' fuel consumption, lower emissions and reduce noise pollution, The Engineer reported.
Energy produced by a plane's braking system during landing could be converted into electricity by motor generators built into the landing gear. Currently, the energy produced is wasted as heat from the friction of the plane's disc brakes while stopping. The collected electricity could be stored and used by in-hub motors in the wheels of the plane when it needs to taxi, the source reported.
According to Professor Paul Stewart from the program, taxiing is a very energy-inefficient process that the aviation industry is working to change.
"If the next generation of aircraft that emerges over the next 15 to 20 years could incorporate this kind of technology, it would deliver enormous benefits, especially for people living near airports," Stewart said. "Currently, commercial aircraft spend a lot of time on the ground with their noisy jets running."
Further investment in pilot insurance could also improve the aviation industry.
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