Third runway WILL hit the health of Londoners
LONDON ASSEMBLY’S REPORT SAYS HEATHROW EXPANSION WOULD HAVE ‘SEVERE EFFECTS’
GROUPS campaigning against the Heathrow expansion have been saying it for a long time.
But now a report by the London Assembly has spelled it out in very clear terms, too.
The planned third runway at Heathrow Airport WILL have an effect on Londoners’ health.
And there’s a fresh call for it to be stopped altogether.
The warning has come from the environment committee at the Assembly, and warns of the effects of noise pollution.
How hard does the report go?
Very. The levels of noise expected to come with Heathrow’s third runway – approved by Parliament in June 2018 – will disturb work, relaxation and sleep, and it will have “severe effects” on health and wellbeing, it warns.
Caroline Russell, chairman of the environment committee, spelled out: “The experiences of residents living with the daily nightmare of overhead noise are deeply worrying.
“This drive towards filling airspace capacity must be checked. For too many people, including children, aircraft noise is a major dominant intrusion into their everyday lives.”
Speaking in very plain terms, she asks “give us a break” on behalf of Londoners.
Ms Russell added: “We have already made clear our objection to the expansion of Heathrow, but aviation authorities and operators must prioritise the health and well-being of Londoners and give us a break.”
Further concerns:
The report made several other demands including.
■ Keeping a close eye on noise: This would mean asking the Independent Commission on Civil Aviation Noise to regulate noise disturbances from airports more strictly and mapping the combined effect of noise pollution for all of London’s airports.
■ Switching flight paths: The report calls for flight paths to be rotated. This would give people living under concentrated flight paths a break from constant airplane noise.
■ Quiet times: They’re calling on airline to stop late night and early morning flights.
Campaigners are surely in full support of this?
Yes. Groups campaigning against the Heathrow expansion have welcomed the report.
Rob Barnstone, the co-ordinator of the No 3rd Runway Coalition, called its findings “sensible”.
He said: “London is set to be severely impacted by plans to expand Heathrow, in an already outdated airspace which leaves so many vast swathes of Londoners’ lives, in some cases many, many miles from Heathrow, blighted by noise from planes.
“The sensible recommendations in this report should be implemented by the aviation authorities at the very earliest opportunity.”
And Jackie Clark, the chairman of the Stop Heathrow Expansion group, said the health and wellbeing of people being impacted by Heathrow is “paramount” and called on Heathrow to make sure a ban on night flights is extended to eight hours each night.
What is the status of Heathrow’s expansion plans?
Parliament voted in favour of a third runway at Heathrow in June 2018 but High Court judges are due to hear a legal challenge over the plans, beginning in March.
A coalition of councils, residents, environmental charities and the mayor of London Sadiq Khan are challenging the Government’s decision
If it does go ahead, construction could begin in 2021, with the third runway operational by 2026.
It’s been stated that the number of flights will increase from around 475,000 to 740,000 a year.
Campaigners say this means around 200,000 more people will be affected by aircraft noise.
Heathrow has also recently published plans to increase its flights to around 500,000 per year and change flight paths, including overflying new areas, even before any third runway.