Birmingham Airport anti-Noise Group

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Monday, 26th June 2006

Government urged to ground airport expansion

Birmingham Airport anti-Noise Group (BANG) [1], a residents' protest group campaigning against the expansion of Birmingham International Airport (BIA) has thrown its weight behind a national campaign being launched tomorrow (Tuesday 27th June) by the AirportWatch coalition aimed at persuading the Government to 'rethink' national air transport policy.[2]

The Department for Transport's December 2003 White Paper, 'The Future of Air Transport', sets out a major thirty-year programme of airport expansion, including a runway extension and new second runway for Birmingham Airport, in order to accommodate speculative forecasts of a near-trebling in demand for flights at British airports by 2030.

As part of the White Paper's 'Programme of Action', the Government promised to "monitor and evaluate the effectiveness and impact" of the new policies and "report progress generally on the policies and proposals set out in the White Paper" by the end of 2006.[3] A 'progress report' on the implementation of the White Paper is expected to be published in December, but campaigners are calling for a far-reaching policy re-evaluation.

Secretary of Birmingham Airport anti-Noise Group (BANG) James Botham said:

"Aviation ministers talk about striking a balance between economic growth, social inclusion and environmental protection, but it’s clear both from the White Paper and the Birmingham Airport’s recent ‘Draft Master Plan’ that expansion on the scale envisaged by the Government and BIA would result in the airport’s major local environmental impacts – day- and night-time aircraft noise, air pollution and airport-related road traffic – all increasing over the next twenty-five years. This is not a balanced approach, but a trade-off, local people’s environment and quality of life sacrificed in the pursuit of maximum economic gain."[4]

"Local communities deserve better than this. A genuinely ‘balanced approach’ would prevent aviation’s major environmental impacts increasing over time, while also allowing airports to continue to deliver economic and social benefits to communities and the nation as whole. Such an approach should not be beyond the capacity of airport operators to implement, if their confidence in the potential of technological innovation in aircraft engine design to reduce noise and pollution is genuine; what’s lacking is a clear lead from central Government."

Editor's Notes

[1] Birmingham Airport anti-Noise Group (BANG) was established in November 2001 by Hodge Hill and Castle Bromwich residents. The group has 450 official supporters in Birmingham and Solihull. See BANG’s website, www.bhamantinoise.org.uk, for more information.

[2] AirportWatch is an alliance of national environmental organisations and local campaign groups opposing damaging airport expansion schemes in their neighbourhoods. For more information on AirportWatch and the 'Rethink' campaign, visit the website, www.rethink.airportwatch.org.uk.

[3] HM Department for Transport, 'The Future of Air Transport' White Paper, December 2003, para.12.28.

[4] Birmingham Airport's October 2005 Draft Master Plan, 'Towards 2030: Planning a Sustainable Future for Air Transport in the Midlands', presents is a programme of expansion that increases the airport's major environmental impacts over the plan period to 2030. For instance, we are told to expect:

• Worsening aircraft noise: 'The increase in ATMs from 2010 through to 2030 leads to an increase in populations exposed to corresponding day and night noise contours' (para.10.12); 'the noise contours are forecast to increase with air traffic growth up to 2030' (para.10.18).
• More disturbance from night flights: 'The night noise contours reflect a growth in average noise over the period 2010 to 2030' (para.10.15).
• Worsening air quality: The table on page 92 shows emissions of five air pollutants (nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, hydrocarbons and particulates) from airport-related sources (including the M42) will increase during the plan period and even (except in the case of sulphur dioxide) reversing the downward trend in emissions from 2003-2010 after 2016, when emissions start to rise again.
• More road traffic on an over-stretched network: 'Local to the Airport . . . and on key access routes within the West Midlands, the forecast growth of Birmingham International Airport will place increased demands on the surface transport network and systems' (para.9.2), leading to damaging knock-on developments such as the proposed widening of the M42 motorway (SAP4, p82).
• More loss of Green Belt and ecologically important sites: 'The land take of designated sites will primarily result in a loss of nationally important grassland communities . . . as well as some woodland . . . and significant lengths of hedgerow. This cumulative effect on designated sites across this area is significant' (para.10.55).

The Draft Master Plan is available on-line at www.bhx.co.uk/Press/220.pdf. For paper copies call BIA on 0121 767 7433.

BANG's submission to the 2005-6 Draft Master Plan public consultation, 'Towards a Genuinely Balanced Approach', is available on-line at www.bhamantinoise.org.uk/dmp_2006.htm. For paper copies call BANG on 0121 632 6909 (ask for James Botham). The outcome of the consultation – the adopted Master Plan – is due to be published early next year.

Also available on-line is BANG’s response to the current draft of the airport company's Property Valuation Support (PVS) Scheme, at www.bhamantinoise.org.uk/pvss_2006.htm. Paper copies also available.