GreenSage E-zine 01/2008

Singapore Opens "Green" Airport Terminal
By Elaine Ireland and Daryl Loo

Singapore opened a new "green" airport terminal on January 8th, 2008, boasting energy-saving skylights, a butterfly garden and over 200 species of foliage spread over enough floor space to cover 50 soccer fields.

Begun in 1999, the S$1.75 billion ($1.22 billion [$1.00 USD=1.430 Singapore Dollar]) terminal at state-owned Changi Airport received its first passengers, who landed on a Singapore Airlines flight from San Francisco amidst a high-powered welcoming committee including government ministers.

The new terminal, Singapore's third, boosts Changi's total passenger capacity by around 45 percent to 70 million, as airports throughout Asia expand to gear up for predictions of strong growth in regional travel.

The terminal is designed to run on lower energy costs than the older terminals, mainly via natural lighting from the 919 skylights and by positioning air-conditioners nearer to floor-level. "The cost to run the terminal should be lower. But it's still too early to project what the cost-savings will be," said a spokesman from the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore, which manages the airport.

Designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill and CPG Corporation, Japan's Shimizu Corp. was the main contractor for the construction.

The terminal has a striking five-storey high wall of hanging plants, a butterfly garden and koi ponds dotted amid its gleaming 380,000 square meters (4 million sq ft).

The airport already has three terminals. Terminal 1 opened in 1981 and Terminal 2 in 1991, while a ''Budget Terminal'' for low-cost carriers opened last year.

The new terminal is slightly bigger than Terminal 2 and can accommodate more than 100 shops. Among the 28 aerobridge gates in the terminal are eight that are specially designed to handle the new Airbus A380, the world's largest passenger jet, the first of which is being flown by Singapore Airlines.

The new seven-storey building, located opposite Terminal 2, has an open and airy concept with towering ceilings, lots of transparent glass panels, skylights that enable the sun's rays to permeate and an abundance of tropical greenery.

The baggage collection area includes a modernistic sculptured sandstone art wall custom-made in Bali. The area is adorned with coconut trees and a giant five-storey high wall of jungle creepers and cascading water features called the ''Green Wall'' spaning 300 metres and comprises 25 species of climbing plants. The Green Wall also helps to regulate the internal temperature of the terminal with the occasional misting.

The airport is connected to more than 180 cities in 57 countries by more than 80 airlines. Singapore is competing against Hong Kong and Bangkok to be the region's top aviation hub. Passenger traffic at the Changi Airport rose 8 percent in 2006 to hit a new record of about 35.03 million over 2005.

Booming air travel is seen by environmentalists as bad for greenhouse emissions, with aviation likely to be a controversial topic in discussions to attempt to adhere to the Kyoto Protocol on climate change.