Airlines strive to become more ‘green’

The next time you get a drink on a United Airlines flight, you may notice a new cup in your hand.

In an effort to become more eco-friendly, United is replacing its foam cups with recyclable plastic cups.

United is not the only airline thinking about air travel’s environmental effect.

Southwest Airlines has converted diesel-burning ramps, belt-loaders and other equipment to electric power, and has installed plane seats and interiors made of recyclable materials.

Delta Air Lines recycles some of its waste and donates money generated to Habitat for Humanity, the home-building nonprofit. American Airlines has replaced heavy flight manuals and maps with electronic tablets to reduce the weight of its planes.

Airline travel is responsible for about 2 percent of the planet’s carbon emissions, or about 250 million tons of carbon dioxide each year.

AIRPORT ADDS POT ‘AMNESTY BOXES’

Colorado Springs Airport recently installed three green metal containers in the terminal where travelers can deposit marijuana, which is legal to buy in Colo­rado but banned in the airport.

­With recreational marijuana now on sale in Colo­rado, the Denver and Colo­rado Springs airports have made it clear that travelers cannot bring pot through their facilities. Even medical marijuana is forbidden.

But the folks at the Colo­rado Springs airport, about 70 miles south of Denver, don’t want travelers to dump bags of overlooked pot into the terminal trash bins. For that reason the airport has installed "amnesty boxes."

A spokesman for the airport said the boxes will be monitored 24 hours a day, with Colo­rado Springs police responsible for emptying the boxes and destroying any drugs.

Hugo Martin, Los Angeles Times