New runway pollution plan ‘inadequate’
29.01.10
There are ‘clear inadequacies’ in pollution safeguards imposed by the Government on the expansion of Heathrow Airport, the London Assembly has said. Measures to mitigate the impact of a third runway were not ‘fit for purpose’, its environment committee claims. The committee is also concerned that no single authority will ensure BAA and airlines complied with pollution measures. However, a Department for Transport spokesman said its environmental criteria was ‘robust and relevant’.
A new runway could see passengers increase from 67m to 82m per year, and potentially up to 135m, and that could increase aircraft noise, air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. The Government gave the expansion plan the go-ahead in January last year on condition that measures were put in place to these limit noise, pollution and emissions. However, three Government departments, two quangos and the Committee on Climate Change have all been charged with responsibility for different aspects of the conditions.
Even without the construction of a third runway, Heathrow's air pollution levels already exceed EU limits. The airport is a hotspot for nitrogen oxides and particulate matter which can both damage people's health.
London Assembly environment committee chairman Murad Qureshi said of the plans: ‘Our investigation has raised grave concerns about some of these safeguards, including clear inadequacies in approaches to tackling air pollution level. We would also question whether the suggested noise benchmark is fit for purpose and if the aviation emissions targets are achievable.’
He said BAA's range of measures, which include levies on more polluting planes and efforts to reduce congestion on the airfield, were insufficient. The committee also said more action was needed to reduce road traffic, which is a major contributor to Heathrow's pollution. It called for a joint government and BAA plan for improving air quality and said a failure to meet EU pollution targets could result in fines of hundreds of millions of pounds.
However, a spokesman for the Department for Transport said a new runway at Heathrow Airport would secure jobs and ensure Britain remained a place where the world could come to do business. He said: ‘In giving support for a third runway, the Government was absolutely clear that new capacity will only be released once strict air quality and noise conditions are met and on the basis of independent assessment. An enforcement framework for this is being developed and we will consult on our proposals later this year.’
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