Camden should back Heathrow protests

A number of local authorities have join the 2M protest against the third runway at Heathrow and against the way the consultation was launched. 2M stands for two million voices against Heathrow expansion - www.2MGroup.org.uk . I think Camden should join the protest.

The third runway proposal would increase the number of flights in and out of Heathrow from the present limit of 480,000 to around 702,000 by 2030. This is equivalent to building a new airport the size of Gatwick. The Transport Department is not asking us if we want this expansion – that decision was taken in the 2003 airports white paper. Today’s consultation is about whether an almost 50 per cent increase in flights can be achieved without adding to the numbers of residents who suffer noise nuisance. It also looks at whether expansion on this scale will breach EU air quality limits.

Adding a third runway at Heathrow will make it hard if not impossible to reach our national target of 60% fewer carbon emissions by 2050. Like many campaigners I believe the government and the aviation industry consistently understate the true environmental impact of airport growth. At the same time there is no truly independent assessment of the economic benefits of expansion.