Heathrow promises branded 'worthless' as a third runway is cleared for take-off
by Hammersmith and Fulham Press Office
20/01/2009
An all out legal battle to stop a third Heathrow runway is being considered by H&F Council and other west London authorities.
Officials are meeting with lawyers this week to go through the Government’s announcement over the third runway before drawing up a legal challenge.
Transport Secretary Geoff Hoon triggered outrage – and flew in the face of public opinion in the borough – by giving a third runway the nod last week. 93 per cent of H&F residents said they were against expansion in a poll of more than 4,000 people last year.
A third runway at the airport will allow the number of flights to rocket from 480,000 to 702,000 by 2030 but Secretary Hoon tried to deflect criticism by banning “mixed-mode” flights – which could have led to all-day flights over the borough – and creating an independent watchdog to monitor noise and air pollution.
But Cllr Nicholas Botterill slammed the expansion plans as ‘a pill too bitter to be sweetened’ as full details emerged. It is also understood that although the two existing runways will continue to operate as they do now – with runway alternation in place – the third runway will operate in ‘mixed mode’ and be used for both departures and arrivals. This could effectively mean that areas like Hammersmith get no respite from additional flights.
Cllr Botterill said: “This massive expansion is the equivalent to building a new airport the size of Gatwick in the most densely populated part of the country. It is difficult to know how much weight we can attach to the promises on the existing runways when so many similar assurances have proved worthless in the past.”
Secretary Hoon claimed that the full additional capacity would depend on the emergence of newer less-polluting aircraft. Until then the extra flights would be capped at 125,000.
But Cllr Botterill hit back saying, “Hoping for an airplane that doesn’t cause noise or air pollution is like hoping for a chocolate bar that makes you lose weight. It isn’t going to happen. These plans should be grounded before it is too late.”
The Government also announced that expansion would be subject to noise and air quality limits not being breached and indicated that a high speed rail hub could be sited at the airport.
“Promises that environmental impacts will be regulated will be taken with a pinch of a salt by many residents,” continues Cllr Botterill. “Air pollution levels already exceed EU limits yet the Government does nothing. The reality is that once a third runway is in place, it will be used to the full.
“We have no confidence in the assessment of environmental impacts carried out by the Government. Too much of this has been led by the airport owners and too much is based on imaginary aircraft. The Government is hell-bent on exacerbating a planning error of the 1940s and those responsible for the decision won't be around when we learn that the so-called ‘less polluting’ planes have not materialised.”
“Many of the arguments for a third runway are based on pretty flimsy economic arguments that do not stand much scrutiny. Even if they did, what is the point of having an economy that blights the lives of the people it is supposed to help? If the third runway is built it will introduce another flight path over the borough, disturbing residents with flights all day from early morning to late at night.”
H&F Council is a member of the 2M Group which is an all-party alliance of local authorities concerned at the impact of Heathrow expansion on residents.
Officials from the group are now meeting with lawyers to go through the Government’s announcement line by line before drawing up a legal challenge.
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What's next?
2009: BAA can now apply to Hillingdon Council for planning permission. However the local authority has steadfastly opposed the expansion and could reject the application.
2009-2011: The public inquiry could take up to two years to resolve at which point BAA could then be in a position to obtain compulsory purchase orders to demolish homes and businesses.
2011-2014: It could take another three years of legal wrangling before construction begins.
2014: It could take another six months before bulldozers start on site if police have to physically remove activists. BAA could at this point apply for planning permission for a sixth terminal to support the runway.
2020: Allowing for unforeseen delays, the runway could be operational.
