Emissions are a major issue

Aviation is one of the biggest threats our planet faces today.

Gatwick has not spent the past two years seeking to become greener, instead it rejoices as business as usual with little concern about the surrounding environmental damage it causes and will increasingly cause.

Its plans for the government’s modernisation of airspace are to fly over many new communities in Sussex and Surrey.

If Gatwick Airport had a large chimney pumping out black smoke would a government member be so keen to attend such a premises?

According to the local authority that monitors Gatwick Airport, 15 per cent of emissions come from the road while 30 per cent comes from aviation.

It is predicted that by 2038 business as usual will see NOx increase higher than the 2018 figures. With two runways this would increase further by 25-30 per cent. Even ICAO (international aviation body) recognise that there will be two-three times more NOx released by aviation between now and 2050.

“The number of ultrafine particles 500 metres downwind of Gatwick Airport was greater than those at the kerb of London’s busiest roads’,” said the recent report by Dr Gary Fuller of Imperial College.

The roller coaster of seasonal jobs brings instability to surrounding areas, as such local authorities should have learnt lessons from the past two years.

Gatwick is always hit the hardest due to its business format that relies predominantly on leisure travel.

With increasing household bills and greener fuels being three times more expensive than fossil fuels we could simply see Gatwick declining again as the consumer faces more realistic ticket prices that truly reflect the damage flying does to the planet.

And the vapours and soot from aircraft contribute far more emissions to the planet than carbon alone according to Bill Hemmings, an international environmentalist that spoke at the CAGNE AGM this month.

CAGNE COMMITTEE

Horsham