Airport Experience® News - Customer Service Issue 2024

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In August the Metropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) announced that it had begun construction on a 168,000-square-foot expansion of Terminal 2 at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP). The $263 million Terminal 2 North Expansion Project, which is slated for completion by 2027, will add two gates, increase passenger space at the terminal’s northernmost gates, and create new restrooms, concessions and additional operational support areas. A key feature of this project is the increased sustainability measures included in it as the MAC pursues LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold certification, the second highest rating attainable through the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). “We are incorporating many energy saving and green building systems throughout the new terminal space, including LED lighting, automated building monitoring, rainwater reclamation and a geothermal system,” noted Bridget Rief, vice president of planning and development at the MAC, at the time of the announcement. The expansion’s sustainability elements are certainly extensive; compared to conventional construction, the project is designed to reduce embodied carbon by 36 percent, and it is also being designed and managed to reduce project construction and demolition waste to landfills by 75 percent. Once the project is complete, the planned rainwater harvesting process is expected to reduce the amount of water coming from the local water utility by 56 percent; new water efficient fixtures will result in an estimated 31-percent reduction

in water demand; new geothermal wells are projected to result in an 8.9-percent reduction in energy usage by the HVAC system; increased wall and roof insulation, airtight exterior detailing, and energy efficient lighting and mechanical systems will all contribute to an anticipated 19 percent reduction in overall energy demand for heating and cooling; and an extensive green roof with roof-top irrigation will cut water usage by up to 40 percent. MSP is far from the only North American airport taking major steps toward making airport buildings, and the construction of them, greener. As the aviation industry at large seeks to reduce waste, energy usage and carbon emissions, being more sustainable from the very start of a new project is key to ensuring a more eco-friendly future at the airport. Going For (LEED) Gold LEED is the world’s most widely used green building rating system and many airports seek out LEED certification, which ranges from Certified to Silver to Gold to Platinum, when putting together their expansion plans. At Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), a dozen buildings have received LEED recognition,

Left, Above: Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport’s Concourse D and South Deck, both currently under construction, are among the many buildings for which LEED certification is pending. The airport already has a dozen buildings that have received LEED recognition at various levels.

Below: In August the Metropolitan Airports Commission began construction on a 168,000-square-foot expansion of Terminal 2 at Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport (rendering shown). A key feature of this project is increased sustainability measures.

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AX NEWS OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2024