NGOs tell Government to halt airport expansion
18th May, 2022
Today, a group of NGOs (AEF, AirportWatch, Friends of the Earth, Green Alliance, Greenpeace, Possible and T&E) has written to Aviation Minister Robert Courts calling on the Government to withdraw its policy support for airport expansion until aviation emissions are actually falling, and wider emissions are substantially below a 1.5oC-compliant trajectory.
It also voices concerns that the Government’s draft Jet Zero strategy is built around assumptions that increases in sustainable fuels and carbon removals will occur after 2030, but with no clear policy plan to ensure they are delivered.
Neither the Airports National Policy Statement (ANPS) for a new runway at Heathrow nor the Making Best Use (MBU) policy for other airports – both released in 2018 – have yet been assessed for their compatibility with delivering net zero aviation by 2050, the letter points out. Planning authorities should not be left reliant on out-of-date policies when determining applications for airport expansion.