Recycled water beautifies RGIA

.Ever wondered how the landscape at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) is so green and clean and thousands of flowery plants and creepers welcome you to the terminal? The answer lies in the treated wastewater that is recycled for use in flushing, cooling tower makeup water and irrigation of the extensive greenery within the airport.

Recycling & reuse of waste water for various purposes is an important element of Hyderabad Airport’s water conservation strategy. In this regard, efficient Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) have been installed to treat wastewater. The sewage from various facilities is collected and transferred to the 2 STPs which are of 925 KLD capacity each coupled with a wide network of sewerage system.

RGIA was built from grounds up with an array of water efficient devices including E-tap (electronic sensors), E-flush, waterless urinals, spring loaded push taps, health faucets, low flush cistern, Aerators, etc. The airport also ensures that these are upgraded/ replaced with latest technology from time to time to continuously optimize the water consumption.

The treated wastewater is recycled for use in flushing, cooling tower makeup water and irrigation of the extensive greenery within the Airport. Also sludge generated from the STP is being used as manure for the plants in the airport’s landscaping.

As a further measure of optimizing water usage, the airport has installed a robust irrigation system which has automatic drip & sprinkler network catering to the greenery of road, median, rotaries, car park, terminal building and office buildings. The automatic irrigation system ensures right quantity of water for plants and hence reduces wastage.In 2017, RGIA utilized more than 34,000 KL of rainwater for various airport activities, thus reducing its dependency on the municipal water supply.

RGIA receives pre-treated freshwater from the local water board to meet its primary water demand mainly for drinking and preparation of food at Food & Beverage outlets among others. Although the municipal water is pre-treated to the domestic standards, as a further measure of purification the incoming supply is passed through Multi Grade Filters (MGF) to remove suspended solids in the Water Treatment Plant (WTP) at the airport.

The water quality is tested daily to conform to the prescribed standards. After preliminary treatment, this water is supplied to the airport facilities through a network of dedicated lines.

As among the busiest airports in India, RGIA has established world class infrastructure for the efficient water management system. This comprises robust water storage and distribution network, water efficient devices, water flow meters, efficient collection and transfer system of domestic wastewater, sewage treatment plants and a wide drainage network of rainwater runoff and water holding tanks, among others.