Brisbane Airport named finalist for Sustainability Awards
29/04/2009
Brisbane Airport’s vision to be Australia’s sustainable airport has moved a step closer, with the Airport being named as one of three finalists in the 2009 Queensland Sustainable Industries awards category. The awards, given by the Department of Environment and Resource Management, recognise leadership and innovation in Business Sustainability. This year Brisbane Airport has handled a record 18 million passengers and is approaching the halfway mark in its $3billion infrastructure expansion program spanning 4 Major Projects in Roads, Terminal and Runway expansions which will be completed by 2020. The latest nomination follows a number of awards received by Brisbane Airport last year, including the world's most “sustainable water manager” in 2008, awarded by the International Water Association in Europe. In addition, the Australian Airport’s Association Capital City Airport of the Year award, and the Best Airport in the Australia-Pacific region in the prestigious Skytrax Awards, were also awarded, very much on the back of Brisbane Airport’s Sustainability achievements. Brisbane Airport’s ongoing commitment to the reduction of potable water use since 2004 has seen the airport’s usage drop by over 72% with current water usage at 444ML, a saving equivalent to the annual potable water usage of 24,000 households in Brisbane under the current restriction regime. Brisbane Airport Corporation (BAC) Managing Director and CEO, Koen Rooijmans, said that the nomination was further testimony to the innovative work BAC has been delivering through its environmental efficiency initiatives. “The environment we have to work with on the airport has some additional complexities which make water efficiency incredibly difficult. On top of the close to 20 million passengers who travel through the airport each year, a growing workforce of around 16,000 across more than 300 companies on airport, and of course over 100,000 visitors to the airport every day, additional safety requirements for aircraft operations have had to be addressed to mitigate dust suppression while the huge construction projects are being undertaken over the coming years”, Mr. Rooijmans said. “We are the International gateway way to Queensland, so we must ensure we have pleasant landscaping and surroundings for visitors. All this must be done across 2700 hectares – a piece of land three times the size of Sydney Airport. “After years of the worst drought seen in Queensland over 100 years, we had to find ways to still achieve these goals, but reduce our potable water consumption at the same time. Innovation has played a major role in the initiatives we have introduced across the airport, from the construction of freshwater lakes to rainwater harvesting and the installation of water saving devices. “These initiatives are now delivering results not only in water efficiency but also cost efficiency and I am very proud that BAC is being recognised for its work on a local, national and international scale.” Innovative waste-water treatment facilities are saving BAC millions of dollars in water and energy savings. Once among the top ten water users in Queensland, BAC has cut its water consumption by adopting a Water Action Plan. Class A recycled water, from BAC's in-house waste-water treatment plant is now used for the terminal's cooling towers, boosting water savings to at least 78 percent and 82 percent from 2009 ─ a cost saving of close to $4 million at today’s potable water prices, increasing to close to $28 million cumulatively, by 2020. The implementation of recommendations from an airport wide energy audit potentially will improve energy efficiency in our top ten buildings by 25%. Initial pilot projects have found annual savings of 355 megawatts per year. The winners of the 2009 Queensland Sustainable Industries Awards will be announced Friday 12 June 2009 at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre. Ends
