INTEGRATED WATER MANAGEMENT IN AIRPORTS – By Benedicto Benson Longwe

News

Travelling by plane is a very exiting experience for many people. In the developing world, many people aspire or dream to fly at any point in time. For many, flying brings a satisfying feeling and admiration. While others find flying as part of fulfilling businesses; others find it as a hobby or a means of convenience depending on the origins of the passengers.
While the aviation industry through its set standards strives to create best experiences on the plane and on the ground; there are aspects that should be appreciated and managed in a manner of sustainability. Water is just one element that adds value to the experience of the passengers. Imagine an aircraft under long haul without water supply system in the washrooms, or a terminal building without water services? Life would for sure be a mess and the desire to fly would be killed.
This is the very reason that water should be always used sparingly in the aviation chain knowing that we act local while thinking global. The small efforts that we put across in managing the water resource will allow for sustainability of the resource.
But why is local water management efforts sometimes difficult in the airports? Lifestyle is one aspect that answers this question. The way people clean up in the lavatories is informed by various lifestyles including culture, background, religion, gender and age among others. Fortunately, the airport water supply system designs take care of all this by ensuring a bigger factor of safety when estimating water demand. Water may seem without cost in the airports and taken for granted yet it carries costs on two fronts namely the source and disposal. This is why it must be managed efficiently and always valued.
In order to achieve better management of the resource – Consideration could be put on installation of efficient appliances like smart taps, efficient toilet systems which would use less water, metered taps for various uses on a quota basis per capita, efficient ticketing management systems to minimize delays and long overlays, improved overall airport efficiency to reduce time spent at the terminal over and above provide passengers with information to deal with water management around the aviation industrial cycle which should cover the airside, landside and aircraft water management aspects through signage, inserts in the cabin documents and mainstreamed public addresses both on board aircrafts and in the terminal building. Water harvesting with different methods and techniques could also be explored depending on the type of airport and targeted water uses. There is therefore a need to dissect these interventions in more detail to expand and give more meaning to them.
These measures will ensure a good saving of water in both quality and quantity for sustainability. Good management practices will assist the recycling processes to be easy and effective once quality is well managed. With awareness, responsible passengers will adjust their water needs to contribute towards proper management of the overall system.
To achieve effectiveness, an integrated approach needs to be employed and everyone accessing airport services should think bigger by acting smaller.

CONTACT info@itaerea.com +34 902 505 501 TEACHERS TRAINING