Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is looking for partners to build and operate a state-of-the-art, onsite recycling and composting facility that would enable the airport to reuse 90% of its waste.
The project, Green Acres ATL Energy Park, went out for bids February 5, 2015. It is part of an overall initiative to help Hartsfield-Jackson Airport to achieve zero waste status by the year 2020.
Miguel Southwell, managing director for Hartsfield-Jackson Airport, said, “Our goal is to make Atlanta’s airport one of the most sustainable airports in the world. The Green Acres project is an important step in achieving that objective and this will be another opportunity to provide value to our customers.”
Under the terms of the request for proposal (RFP), the selected partner would lease 30 acres of airport property just south of the fifth runway for 30 years. The company would then develop a fully enclosed commodity recovery, recycling and reprocessing facility to open by March 1, 2017.
More than half of the 19,000 tons of waste generated annually by the Airport is food waste and food packaging. This year, the airport’s 120 restaurant locations will make the switch to biodegradable plates and packaging, as well as utensils and cups made from biopolymers capable of fully degrading within six months. Hartsfield-Jackson also recently placed more than 300 recycling bins throughout the passenger concourses.
The selected Green Acres partner will be responsible for further sorting the waste that enters the new plant. The RFP stipulates that the facility cannot generate odors or attract rodents, and must provide an enclosed, pressurized environment.
In addition to airport waste, Green Acres will process another 19,000 tons of yard trimmings a year from Atlanta’s Department of Public Works. Eventually, the airport plans to build an education center adjacent to the compost plant that would be open for tours and classes.
Prospective partners are expected to have extensive experience in composting and recycling, as well as in grey water filtration and agricultural production in an urban environment.
To read more about the RFP click here.
