Cochin international airport to adopt stricter green measures

KOCHI: The Cochin International Airport Ltd (Cial) is gearing up to adopt sterner environmental regulations as the airport is set to record 50,000 aircraft movements annually in one or two years.
The airport, which recorded 47,000 aircraft movements last year, has been registering steady growth
. As per global norms, the airport will have to adopt stricter pollution control measures, including air quality maintenance, reduction of noise and conservation of water and energy, once it records 50,000 aircraft movements per year.
Airport director A C K Nair said Cial has already taken measures such as reduction of carbon emission from vehicles coming to airport, recycling of used water, banning the use of materials such as plastic and installing solar power units.
Cial has launched initiatives to create awareness on global pollution norms among a core group of airport stakeholders as part of the European Union- (EU) India Civil Aviation Project for Environment. Aviation experts from EU Panagiotis Karamanos and Michael O Conner attended a workshop held on Wednesday.
They said India, the ninth largest aviation market, was set to become the third largest after the US and China by 2020. Nair said the EU experts expressed satisfaction over the measures taken by Cial.