Photo: http://sathiyam.tv/One airport across the world has set a pretty high standard for all other airports.
The Chennai International Airport (MAA) in Chennai, India may only be the third largest airport in the country, but it is officially the greenest.
Originally built to handle approximately four million passengers per year, the airport grew to handle about 10 million making an expansion necessary.
However, instead of just getting a basic expansion, the airport has also seen major upgrades in sustainability, including:
- Two lush, ecologically sustainable gardens each covering almost one acre in the domestic and international terminals
- Terminal roofs are wing-shaped to help to collect water to irrigate the gardens
- Parking garage “green” roof captures water in cisterns during the rainy seasons to irrigate the roof foliage during dry seasons
Even though India does not widely adopt the LEED rating system, the airport was designed based on the LEED guidelines.
