Save the planet, go to the restroom before boarding

All Nippon Airways (ANA) is encouraging passengers to go to bathroom to before boarding their airline so folks will be lighter and save fuel.

Smart idea?

Potentially. According to the U.K.'s Daily Mail:

ANA hopes the weight saved will lead to a five-tonne reduction in carbon emissions over the course of 30 days...

Based on an average human bladder capacity of 15oz, if 150 passengers relieved themselves on board an aircraft, this would amount to 63.7kg of waste.

Spend Matters' Jason Busch has other ideas:

I also suspect that the airline will save at least the cost of a business fare or two in the chemicals used to flush the on-board toilets (not to mention reduced soap and water use in the bathrooms).

But how smart is this policy over the long-term? Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT), a potentially deadly medical conditions that can impact anyone (including endurance athletes), is more likely to occur in those who are dehydrated or drink less. The logical extension of ANA's policy will be to serve fewer drinks to passengers as well (which could potentially drive up DVT rates).

Busch's bottom line: Flying creates a lot of greenhouse gas and eliminating potty breaks isn't likely to move the needle one way or the other.

For more than you'll ever want to know on ANA's policy and the impact of airline potty breaks see TreeHugger.com. Also: Prepare for the Airline Potty Police

This post was originally published on Smartplanet.com