Noise News
Below are links to stories about noise in relation to airports and aviation.
CAA says: “Facing up to aviation’s environmental challenges is the key to building new runway”
In its response to the Airports Commission consultation, the CAA says the aviation industry and decision-makers need to be much more ambitious in confronting aviation’s environmental challenges – including improving compensation for communities - or else face the prospect that additional runway capacity may never be built. The CAA says local communities must not be expected to simply suffer the consequences of airport expansion. It says those delivering "the" new runway must do more to ensure communities can be confident that disturbance is minimised, and are "fully engaged in the expansion process." The CAA says without improved action to tackle aviation’s environmental impacts and more support for the communities that are affected, it is unlikely that any of the shortlisted schemes will ever come to fruition "leading to passengers facing higher charges, lower service standards and fewer routes to choose from, greatly limiting consumer choice and opportunity." Andy Haines, the CAA Chief Executive, said unless these issues are "comprehensively tackled” there may not be a runway.
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On final day of Commission consultation, Heathrow raises extent of its noise insulation offer, if it gets a 3rd runway
As part of its attempt to get acceptance for a 3rd runway, Heathrow has had to raise its offer on noise insulation. On the last day of the Airports Commission consultation, it has made a significantly better offer, saying it "could" (sic) pay around £700 million - which is £450 million more than its previous offer in May 2014. This would cover parts of the 55 Lden noise contour area. The number of people within that contour was 725,500 in 2006 and over 314,000 dwellings. Heathrow says their offer now covers about 160,000 homes, and they have included two new areas, not previously covered by their scheme (no map is published).Heathrow has now raised the quality of its noise insulation offer to match those already used in Europe - its current noise insulation offers are far below these. In its new scheme, Heathrow says homes in designated zones "stand to have" (not "will") the " full costs of their noise insulation covered by the airport. In addition, up to £3,000 in noise insulation would be offered to homes further away from the airport." This would be acoustic double glazing; ceiling over-boarding in bedrooms; loft insulation and ventilation. Many noise affected homes already have double glazing and loft insulation ... and still suffer noise. Gardens and parks cannot be insulated. Campaigners said the improved offer was welcome, and should be carried out even if no runway is built, as it illustrates how poor and miserly the insulation schemes have been in the past.
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Datchet residents step up campaign against Heathrow Airport expansion
People in Datchet have been encouraged to send in responses to the Airports Commission consultation, to try to oppose a Heathrow runway - that would devastate their village. Datchet Parish Council has been helping residents to raise awareness locally about the consultation, with volunteers distributing 2,500 flyers. People fear a new runway would mean Datchet would be ruined, but they fear the Heathrow Hub option even more than the Heathrow north west runway option, because it would be 2 miles closer, with 50% more flights than at present, and at half the height - at about 600ft above Datchet. A resident commented: "We have a human right to a quality of life just like everyone else in this country and we should not have to live in noise and pollution hell! Does Heathrow expect us never to go outside?"
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Hounslow spending on school improvement includes noise proofing a special needs school against aircraft noise
Work has started on a multi-million pound project to deliver improvements to a special needs school in Hounslow. A total of £9m is being invested in the redevelopment of the Lindon Bennett School, in Hanworth, to tackle the borough's shortage of places for pupils with special educational needs (SEN). The school is located just outside the Heathrow 55 Lden noise contour, meaning that it suffers considerable aircraft noise, mainly from take offs towards the east. A total of 70 new places will be created and the school will be extended and remodelled to include specialist teaching spaces, classrooms, offices, a hall and kitchen areas. The 2-year scheme to redevelop Lindon Bennett School is part of a wider schools expansion programme to provide more school places across the borough. But the amount of aircraft noise experienced means "where over-cladding on the existing roof is required we have to greatly improve its sound reduction properties to ensure that the noise generated from planes on the flight path doesn’t affect the children’s learning experience." There is no indication that Heathrow will be contributing to the extra costs involved.
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Residents in Auckland, New Zealand, fighting the noise nuisance of planes over the city
People in Auckland New Zealand, are fighting the nuisance of aircraft noise, which has become a serious problem in recent years. The airport is close to the city, and aircraft frequently use flight paths over densely populated areas, as they turn either when landing or taking off. The problem has been made worse in the past year, because concentrated flight paths are being used, in the same way that is happening in UK, Europe, USA and everywhere. The concentrated routes are causing a lot of anger and distress. The local group is Auckland: The Plane Truth (ATPT), working hard to restore some peace and quiet for Auckland residents. ATPT says: "At the least, the noise is physically and emotionally taxing: at the worst, unbearable. Unable to cope, some residents have been forced to move house or to take medication for depression and anxiety, and so they can sleep." There is a petition, asking for a curfew at night, between 10pm and 7am because of the recent changes to flight procedures over Auckland, and the planned significant increases in traffic through Auckland Airport. The type of houses in Auckland, have weatherboard with tin roofing and single glazing. These are difficult to insulate against noise, exacerbating the problem.
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Detailed critique by Hillingdon Council of the Airports Commission’s failure to cover health issues adequately
In its response to the Airports Commission consultation, Hillingdon Borough Council has been highly critical of the Commission's failure to deal properly with health impacts of a new runway. They say a specific Health Impact Assessment (HIA) would have been the best way of addressing weaknesses on health matters. There is no proper baseline for the health and wellbeing status of local communities. They say it is inequitable that existing airport-related impacts are not considered as a key part of the overall assessment of the three schemes. "There seems to be an implicit weighting for economic development and against health evidence." Hillingdon say "it is unclear how local stakeholder feedback would be incorporated" on health issues. And "The Department of Health and Public Health England do not seem to have been consulted" during the Commission's work. "Aggregating positive and negative impacts is flawed and inequitable. The negative impact of noise cannot be ‘bundled’ together with the positive impact of employment, because most often the negative and positive impacts are experienced by different groups of people." "Impacts on children are not considered as part of this assessment either qualitatively or quantitatively. This is a significant omission." And so on. A long catalogue of failures and omissions.
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Problem of how people bothered by aircraft noise can register many complaints
The Daily Mail is shares the glee of Heathrow in locating two people who had set up their computer to make automatic complaints about aircraft noise. This came to light, when after the clocks changed, the complaints about flights were made even before the plane had taken off..... Clearly not a proper complaint. However, the presumption is that one person should only make a small number of complaints, even if they find the aircraft noise they are exposed to is excessive. Heathrow appear to see the complaints line as for planes that are making a degree of noise that is greater than normal, or different. For people who are upset and annoyed by the noise, they may see every plane as upsetting and annoying. Airports are delighted if the number of noise complaints goes down, so the numbers matter. If people do not complain often, they are considered not to be annoyed. That requires people to make multiple complaints, but that takes a great deal of time and effort - hard to sustain while leading a busy life. John Stewart (HACAN) commented: 'I think its unfortunate that many residents felt they had to resort to these kinds of machines, but unfortunately they have been left with no choice but to have them. ....that shows how disturbed people were by the noise from the flight paths."
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DEFRA National Noise Attitude Survey 2012 shows extent of interference from aircraft noise in people’s lives
DEFRA has produced the results of the National Noise Attitude Survey 2012, which looked at the extent to which noise from various sources is a problem to people. They compared the figures from 2000 with 2012. They found the 4 main sources of noise were ‘Road traffic noise’, ‘noise from neighbours and/or other people nearby’, ‘aircraft, airports and airfield noise’ and ‘noise from building, construction, demolition, renovation and road works.’ Though the numbers hearing these noises had remained (2000 - 2012) roughly the same, there is a strongly statistically significant increase in the proportion of respondents who report being bothered, annoyed or disturbed to some extent by these 4 noise sources. The number who consider themselves to be significantly adversely affected by aviation noise has risen from 2% to 4%, which is strongly statistically significant. DEFRA says: "it must not be forgotten that a small percentage still equates to a large number of people." The study showed that of the 510 people who put aviation noise in the top 3 sources that "bother, annoy or disturb" them, some 33% reported interference with sleeping; 24% reported interference with spending time in the garden or on the balcony / terrace; 23% said it interfered with having the windows or doors open; 23% said it interfered with listening to the TV, radio or music; and 23% said it interfered with concentration. (Section V2.8)
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In 2014 Heathrow had 86,000 noise complaints in 5 months – with a 5-fold increase between 2013 and 2014
Heathrow have disclosed to Richmond Park and North Kingston MP Zac Goldsmith that they received a staggering 86,000 complaints about aircraft noise in just 5 months last year. Overall, 94,114 individual noise complaints were made to Heathrow in 2014 compared to just 18,826 in 2013. That is a 5-fold increase in the number of complaints, and a 3-fold increase in the number of people complaining. Heathrow says this is due to the airspace trails they carried out in the last half of 2014 where they tested new flight paths, both to the west and to the east of the airport. Zac Goldsmith said “the recent flight path trials offer a tiny hint of what’s to come if Heathrow is expanded. The trials affected a small part of West London, whereas a 3rd runway would bring hundreds of thousands of new people into the airport’s noise footprint. At this stage they know nothing about it. This .... demonstrates how badly affected people are by aircraft noise." The figures also show that nearly 7,000 people complained about night and early morning flights in 2014. The All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Heathrow and the Wider Economy, recently produced a report showing how the impact of noise from Heathrow’s flight paths has been seriously underestimated.
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Fears over “illustrative map” showing Gatwick flight path over Copthorne and Crawley Down
Copthorne and Crawley Down residents have expressed disbelief that a map released by the Airports Commission about Gatwick's proposed 2nd runway shows what appears to be plans for a new flightpath directly over their homes. The Airports Commission insisted on the production of a map showing a flight path to assess the "operational viability" of the runway, but Gatwick management and NATS say it should "not be interpreted as representative of the location of future flight paths" The map is from a NATS document, which says "These designs are for illustrative purposes only and should not be interpreted as representative of the location of future flight paths, should a particular scheme be recommended...." Although there is currently no permanent flight path in place over the area, residents from both Copthorne and Crawley Down have complained of noise from changes to flight paths over the past year, including the introduction of a "concentrated flight path. People have become eer more aware of the planes and increasingly concerned about future increases, with planes using a new southern runway 1km south of the current one creating yet more noise near them.