Project name
Project period
Project value
5 million € (3 million € co-funded by the LIFE programme of the European Commission managed by the CINEA Agency)
Project description
LIFE TRIPL-AIR is a European project, co-funded by the LIFE programme of the European Commission (managed by the CINEA Agency). During four years, the project is going to implement innovative solutions to improve the waste management in airports, including the development of a prototype of Smart-Bin, able to automatically select and differentiate trash.
LIFE TRIPL-AIR stands for reducing, reusing, and recycling of airport waste and the main ambitious goals of the project are:
Reducing unsorted communal waste by 70%, by using a combination of innovative technologies and processes
Increasing resource efficiency by reuse of construction waste by 85%
The consortium of partners of LIFE TRIPL-AIR is constituted by six partners from five countries: the four Airports of Budapest (Hungary, part of the VINCI Group), Madrid (Spain, AENA Group), Dubrovnik (Croatia, Zračna Luka Dubrovnik) and Venice (Italy, SAVE Group), plus two more partners with specific roles, i.e. Ecoscience Provence from France (providing technical know-how on waste management and sustainability) and Venetian Cluster from Italy (coordinating communication and replication activities).
During the project phase, the four partner airports will implement and assess pilot actions to test innovative technologies and processes: the ones proven to be more successful will then be replicated and the positive results of LIFE TRIPL-AIR will finally reach around 100 affiliated airports in Europe and worldwide.
The impact of the project is therefore staggering, as airports resemble cities - with equally high production of waste and difficulties of management.
LIFE TRIPL-AIR will work in order to lead to the avoidance of at least:
5,000 t of unsorted communal and 1.7 million tons of construction waste at project end, in 2028
21,000 t of unsorted communal and 7.0 million tons of construction waste after replication at the affiliated airports three years after project end, in 2031.
LIFE TRIPL-AIR offers the unique opportunity to reduce the ecological impact of aviation and at the same time to disseminate the findings worldwide. LIFE TRIPL-AIR will actively engage with the 70 million passengers and crew traveling through the partner airports every year to more than 100 countries. Not to forget airport services, as restaurants, shops and all employees working daily in airports.
The same model can then be applied to other transportation hubs, as harbors, railway stations and any site where huge numbers of people pass by, usually in a hurry and distracted by other duties (look for information, find the gate, etc.), that bring to scarce will and attention towards differentiating waste. Technology will be then a strong support to facilitate correct and more sustainable waste management in these critical situations.
LIFE TRIPL-AIR offers the unique opportunity to reduce the ecological impact of aviation and at the same time to disseminate the findings worldwide. LIFE TRIPL-AIR will actively engage with the 70 million passengers and crew traveling through the partner airports every year to more than 100 countries. Not to forget airport services, as restaurants, shops and all employees working daily in airports.
The same model can then be applied to other transportation hubs, as harbors, railway stations and any site where huge numbers of people pass by, usually in a hurry and distracted by other duties (look for information, find the gate, etc.), that bring to scarce will and attention towards differentiating waste. Technology will be then a strong support to facilitate correct and more sustainable waste management in these critical situations.