KIA is now water positive, replenishes more than it consumes

The Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) campus has become 100% water positive, replenishing more water than it consumes. The airport had developed 315 rainwater recharge pits on its campus to collect and harness the water.

The roadmap to achieving water positivity was based on surveys, research and expert opinions. “This led to reduced dependency on municipal water, enabling the conservation of thousands of litres of water, achieving a water positivity index of 1.37,” informed a spokesperson of the Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL).

With a large number of passengers arriving and departing each day, KIA requires millions of litres of water for the maintenance of infrastructure and operations.

To meet the daily water requirement, BIAL initiated projects on ground recharge, lake recharge and an integrated management of liquid and solid waste, therefore avoiding the contamination of groundwater, the spokesperson said.

A 2.5 million litres per day (MLD)-capacity sewage treatment plant was developed to recycle water, which is now used for landscape irrigation, ventilation and air conditioning and fire-fighting requirements. BIAL installed rooftop rainwater harvesting units in five villages to provide safe drinking water for the community, benefiting more than 300 families.

To avoid water wastage, drains were built to direct excess water flow to Bettakote lake, a sprawling water body adjacent to the airport. “We accomplished water positivity by consuming water responsibly, reusing, recycling and replenishing waterbodies,” said Hari Marar, Chief Executive Officer, BIAL.