Stop Stansted Expansion brands airport expansion plans as premature and opportunistic
Stop Stansted Expansion (SSE) has condemned Stansted Airport for insulting the intelligence of Uttlesford District Council (UDC) and the community at large by claiming that its latest expansion proposals will have “no significant adverse environmental effects”. SSE’s Chairman Peter Sanders has further stressed the need for the council not to be hoodwinked by the airport’s spurious claim and to ensure a comprehensive, honest and thorough assessment of all the environmental impacts that would result from major expansion. The statement comes following the airport’s formal notification of its intention to submit a planning application later this year to seek permission to grow to an annual throughput of 44.5 million passengers and 285,000 flights. This compares to last year’s throughput of 24 million passengers and 180,000 flights. If approved, this would mean an extra 20 million passengers and an extra 104,000 flights every year blighting the lives of thousands across the region. Stansted hasn’t even started to make use of its 2008 permission to grow from 25mppa to 35mppa. Even by its own projections, the airport doesn’t expect to reach 35mppa until 2024 although the credibility of its forecasts is questionable given its wildly inaccurate record on this front.
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SSE BRANDS AIRPORT EXPANSION PLANS AS PREMATURE AND OPPORTUNISTIC
19 June 2017 (By Stop Stansted Expansion)
Stop Stansted Expansion (SSE) has condemned Stansted Airport for insulting the intelligence of Uttlesford District Council (UDC) and the community at large by claiming that its latest expansion proposals will have “no significant adverse environmental effects”.
SSE’s Chairman Peter Sanders has further stressed the need for the council not to be hoodwinked by the airport’s spurious claim and to ensure a comprehensive, honest and thorough assessment of all the environmental impacts that would result from major expansion.
The statement comes following the airport’s formal notification of its intention to submit a planning application later this year to seek permission to grow to an annual throughput of 44.5 million passengers and 285,000 flights. This compares to last year’s throughput of 24 million passengers and 180,000 flights.
If approved, this application, taken together with the increases in passenger movements and flights to meet the existing caps, would result in an extra 20 million passengers and an extra 104,000 flights every year blighting the lives of thousands across the region. Yet, according to the airport in its letter to council bosses there is no cause for concern because:
“It should be noted that at this time no significant adverse environmental
effects are predicted as a consequence of the proposed development.”
SSE Chairman Peter Sanders makes clear: “It’s an insult to the intelligence of Uttlesford District Council and the entire local community, for Stansted Airport to claim that an extra 20 million passengers per annum (mppa) and an extra 104,000 annual flights will have no significant adverse environmental effects.”
About half of all Stansted’s passengers travel to and from the airport by car and this proposal would give rise to an 80% increase in airport-related road traffic. That would have serious implications in terms of traffic congestion on our local roads, especially when considered alongside the scale of local housing development currently underway and planned.
The proposed 104,000 increase in the number of flights meanwhile – an extra 2,000 flights a week – will increase the frequency of overflying during the day from the current average of a plane every 2¼ minutes, to a plane every 85 seconds. Again, common sense alone indicates that this will have a serious adverse impact upon local communities.
Why the rush?
Stansted hasn’t even started to make use of its 2008 permission to grow from 25mppa to 35mppa. Even by its own projections, the airport doesn’t expect to reach 35mppa until 2024 although the credibility of its forecasts are questionable given its wildly inaccurate record on this front.
Meanwhile, the Government is currently preparing its National Airports Policy to be presented to Parliament for approval, next spring. [This is not the same thing as the Airports National Policy Statement, NPS, for which the public consultation closed in May]. It will set down the long term policy for the development of all UK airports.
Until such time as the new policy is agreed, there is a policy vacuum and further uncertainty has been created by the recent general election results.
As a consequence, SSE considers that it is both premature and opportunistic for Stansted Airport to submit a planning application this year to expand the airport beyond its present planning limits.
Peter Sanders concluded: “We may not be able to prevent the airport from submitting a planning application but we must at least try to ensure that there is a comprehensive, honest and thorough assessment of all the environmental impacts. That will be our main focus in the months ahead.
“We must do our best to ensure that Uttlesford District Council is not rolled over by the glossy presentations and smooth words from the experts Stansted Airport is paying to dance to its planning application tune.”
ENDS
- More information on Stansted Airport’s formal submission to Uttlesford District Council can be found at http://publicaccess.uttlesford.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=documents&keyVal=OQWZHTQN01O00
FURTHER INFORMATION AND COMMENT
- SSE Campaign Office, Tel: 01279 870558; info@stopstanstedexpansion.com
Stansted Airport accused of showing ‘total disregard’ to residents over massive expansion plans
By William_Mata1
June 06, 2017
Stansted Airport has been accused of showing a “total disregard” for residents over landmark plans to accommodate ten million more passengers every year.
Residents and campaigners have united to point the finger at the airport after it emerged it is looking to embark on a major expansion plan.
The runway could see an extra 11,000 flights each year and the airport would become the UK’s second largest if the proposals are passed.
Uttlesford District Council has received a request for an environment assessment from Stansted Airport as a precursor to lodging a bid for planning permission. The application includes two new links to the runway together and six additional aircraft stands.
Alistair Andrews, Stansted Airport head of planning, said: “We are aiming to submit a planning application later this year, and this scoping report is a part of preparing that application.
“At this stage, no significant adverse environmental effects are predicted. However, the core topics of surface access transport, noise, air quality, socio-economics, carbon, climate change and health will be considered in detail in the environmental statement that will accompany the forthcoming submission.”
For years many East Hertfordshire and west Essex residents have campaigned against expanding Stansted because of noise and pollution concerns.
Peter Sanders, 78, who lives in Saffron Walden and is chairman of pressure group Stop Stansted Expansion, is committed to fighting the move which would see 44.5 million passengers per year.
He said: “The application is premature. The current [maximum] figure is 35 million passengers per year and that is what it was ten years ago so why rush to this stage?
“They say there will be no effects [to residents]. But the throughput is a very big increase from what it is today. They say it’s not significant but try telling that to people who live under the flight path.
“We will be making representations to Uttlesford District Council.”
His views were reflected by Lee Munden, 58, of Rectory Field, Harlow, who has started a petition to stop planes flying so low over town.
He said: “The owners of the airport [Manchester Airport Group] would appear to be heavily focused upon the commercial aspects of Stansted Airport at the expense of local residents.
“Despite the rejection of the second runway, they are looking for ways to circumvent the system to increase revenue via increased passenger numbers.
“My personal opinion is that they have a total disregard for local residents concerns.”
Stansted Airport has committed to engage with residents, businesses and partners about the plans.
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