Dubai Airports’ new initiative to divert 60% of DXB’s waste from landfills by mid-2023

Dubai Airports is kicking off a new waste management initiative that will bolster its commitment to prevent 60 per cent of all waste generated from Dubai International (DXB) from entering landfills by the middle of 2023.

As part of the new programme, the operator has implemented a food waste treatment plan which is expected to capture and compost over 2,000 tonnes of food waste annually from F&B outlets, lounges and hotels across DXB terminals and concourses.

Dubai Airports is kicking off a new waste management aimed at preventing 60% of all waste generated in @DXB from entering landfills by mid-2023. #Dubai pic.twitter.com/K5PmRMW1jH

— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) June 5, 2022

Decomposing food waste in landfills results in the emission of methane gas which is 72 times more harmful than CO2. The new food waste plan was created in partnership with Dubai Airports’ waste management partner Beeah Group. It uses a special high-tech biodigester compost system installed in multiple locations across DXB that increases the speed at which food waste breaks down and becomes reusable compost and clean wastewater.

The DXB waste diversion strategy is designed to sustain a resilient waste management system with the programme already having achieved greater than 40 per cent reduction in waste to date, including an initiative capturing 100 per cent of cooking oil used in airport F&B outlets and converting it to biodiesel fuel, official news agency WAM reported.

“Capturing and diverting all forms of waste from landfills is a strategically important component of our waste management programme,” said Jamal Zaal, vice president of Safety and Sustainability at Dubai Airports. “While airport operations contribute a very small percentage of the overall waste generated at DXB, we are working in close partnership with airlines, F&B facilities, and all other partners across the airport to make a unified commitment to achieving and surpassing our 60 per cent waste reduction objective.”

“Beeah Group is committed to being Dubai Airports’ partner to create a range of innovative new programmes to capture and find a useful purpose for all forms of waste in the most practical and impactful ways possible. Deploying Power Knot technology across all DXB terminals and concourses is a great example of that innovation and will put us on the path to achieve our goal of eliminating food waste and achieving our waste diversion targets,” said Rafael Sanjurjo Lopez, CEO at Bee’ah Tandeef.

In related company news, Dubai Airports announced plans to leverage the infrastructure of Dubai World Central to ensure seamless operations during the planned temporary closure of DXB’s northern runway from May 9 until June 22.

Read: Dubai Airports to close DXB’s northern runway for 45 days