What would be the advantages of “green” airports? Well, there would be several. For one thing, we could cut down on noise pollution. As airports proliferate and more people fly, more people get exposed to noise pollution. This can cause problems ranging from annoyance to increased stress levels to some level of permanent hearing loss if exposure is long enough.

Airports that, along with airplanes, were designed with minimized noise pollution in mind would surely have a positive environmental impact in terms of human health, even if that health is mainly psychological or emotional.

Another advantage of the green airport would be less air pollution. People could breathe easier and enjoy their time at an airport more. Wildlife could be positively impacted (that is, less negatively impacted). Airports could blend in more with the natural landscape to beauty the place where they are situated.

A green airport would also bring economic benefits. Less dependence on imported fossil fuels. Perhaps new fuel supply businesses spring up and create more jobs, such as businesses that create biofuels that are capable of flying great jet planes. Solar powered planes could come on the scene, and those planes would need to be built and maintained and advanced. A green airport would surely not have as high of electricity bills to pay as current ones do.

Green airports need to be carefully designed and planned out, however. It’s really nothing the least bit simple to attempt to transform an existing airport into a green one. They are organic things in and of themselves. Perhaps we could start by simply putting new airports, green ones, in new places, and slowly removing at least many of the current ones, one by one. We could focus on transforming only the very biggest of the current ones, such as O’Hare in Chicago.

It won’t be easy. But the one excuse that history does not tolerate is “it was hard”.