Nov. 11--The panoramic walls of windows and skylights in the new passenger terminal building at Indianapolis International Airport do more than just flood the enormous rooms with sunlight.

They are also part of a extensive architectural and engineering design that is saving at least 18 percent on the costs of operating the facility and have earned the airport's mid-field terminal the certification of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design.

Today, on the third anniversary since the Col. H. Weir Cook Terminal building was opened, the Airport Authority will announce that the environmental designation has been achieved.

At more than 1.2 million square feet, the terminal and adjacent buildings are believed to be among the largest construction projects awarded LEED status.

LEED is a third-party certification program and nationally accepted benchmark for design, construction and the operation of environmentally friendly, or green, buildings. It is managed by the U.S. Green Building Council.

The Indianapolis airport improvements including the terminal cost about $1.1 billion. Generally, the construction materials and techniques required to meet LEED standards can add 1 percent to 2 percent to construction costs.

Airport spokesman Carlo Bertolini said "in our situation, we believe it was a little under 1 percent" because of the unusually large scale of the project.

"On the return side, savings (from the LEED features) is estimated about $2 million a year, probably more," he said.

That means the added costs may be recovered in five to 10 years, possibly sooner considering the rising costs of electricity, fuel and other expenses of running such a large, public building.

Airports do not easily meet LEED standards because of the use of airplane fuels and deicing chemicals in winter. At the Indianapolis airport, some of the deicing chemicals are captured in bioswales or consumed by microorganisms cultivated in detention ponds.

Among a long list of details have qualified the airport's terminal campus for LEED recognition are the natural light that floods into 75 percent of the sprawling building, energy-efficient equipment and building heating and ventilation controls. There are extensive recycling programs of wastes and recycled materials used in construction.

The building is equipped with water-saving fixtures. No smoking is allowed. Mass transit is available at the front door.

And in planning that began 30 years ago for the new terminal building, a site was selected in the middle of the two main northeast-southwest runways to reduce the taxi time and fuel costs for the airplanes, compared to the old terminal on the edge of the airfield. More than 500,000 gallons of jet fuel is saved a year.

"On today's third anniversary of the Midfield Terminal opening, we are reminded of the decades-long foresight and strategic planning that were required to create the award-winning airport we now enjoy," said John Clark III, executive director and chief executive of the airport.

He said "practicing sound sustainability processes helps us improve the quality of life in our community while becoming more competitive" for economic development opportunities.

Besides the LEED certification, other energy-saving projects under way at the airport include changing all the light bulbs in the parking garage and the Indianapolis Maintenance Center where airliners are serviced in 12 huge hangar bays. Savings in electricity from changing the lights is estimated at $250,000 a year.

And the airport board has approved plans for the largest array of solar collecting panel in Indiana on a 70-acre site on the airport. It will generate about 10 megawatts of electricity for sale to the Indianapolis Power & Light Co.

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