We have always said that the Thames Estuary is a disastrous place to put an airport. Well, I am delighted to learn this morning that common sense has prevailed: the Airports Commisssion has ruled out this option – I hope once and for all.
Following a detailed review of the evidence, including some from the RSPB, the Commission concluded that a Thames Estuary airport will not be on its shortlist of potential aviation expansion sites recommended to Government.
You can read the announcement here.
This is good news indeed. To destroy such an important area for wildlife in order to build an airport would have been an act of environmental vandalism on a massive scale. The tidal mudflats, saltmarsh and reed beds that line the estuary are some of the most import wildlife habitats in Europe, home to a rich ecosystem which includes hundreds of thousands of threatened wintering birds. This area is designated with the highest environmental protection available.
Independent consultants reporting to the Airports Commission last month confirmed that, “an airport development [in the estuary] is likely to result in large-scale adverse effects on international nature conservation designations” and that even if it were feasible, the costs of wildlife relocation alone may be £2billion. And we know that attempts to relocate the habitat for hundreds of thousands of birds would have been a nonsense on a grand scale. There is nowhere in Europe large enough to accommodate a compensation site which would have needed to be ten times bigger than anything ever attempted before.
Those of you who remember our major “No airport at Cliffe” campaign a decade or so ago will know that we have been working with the communities in South Essex and North Kent for many years to fight various proposals for airports here. This morning they will feel relieved, delighted and I hope proud of the campaign that they have run. They have for over a decade lived the spectre of an airport. I hope today's announcement signals the end to that threat. No more time and money should wasted in developing proposals for this area.
While we can celebrate the fact that the Thames Estuary and the wildlife it is home to are safe for now, the battle to curb increases in carbon emissions from airportsis unfortunately set to continue. Climate change remains the greatest long term threat to wildlife and we believe there should be no further airports in this country until the Government can demonstrate how they can be built and operated without busting our legally binding climate targets. So this means we will continue to work alongside our NGO colleagues to highlight this issue as the debate around expansion at Heathrow or Gatwick continues.
But for today, I sincerely hope that the Commission’s announcement draws a line under any more proposals for an airport in the Thames Estuary once and for all.
Gill, Joan and George - you and FONKM are brilliant. As ever, it is a joy working with you. A virtual champagne glass raised to you!
We are delighted that the Airports Commission have ruled out the idea of a Thames estuary airport on our precious and internationally protected wildlife sites here. These proposals were defeated by the sheer weight of evidence submitted to the Airports Commission.
On behalf of Friends of the North Kent Marshes we would like to say a BIG thank you to the RSPB and its staff who have worked so hard to collate the evidence and its members for the support that they have given to our wildlife and communities here in the Thames Estuary.
We were privileged to fight alongside you all during the No Airport at Cliffe campaign and joined with you again in your vigorous opposition to the estuary airport proposals put forward by the Mayor of London, Norman Foster and others.
Like you Martin we hope that this threat has gone for good because exacerbating climate change and concreting over our most important wildlife sites is not a sustainable way forward for any future UK government.
We are rightly proud of our natural and cultural heritage and will remain vigilant.
Gill, Joan and George
Friends of the North Kent Marshes
Conservation and Communities United
Well let's hope that after the election Boris Johnson isn't in any position to influence a decision. Of course, the Thames Estuary is a disastrous place to put an airport. Just like a position of power would be a disastrous place to put Boris Johnson.
As you say Martin a great victory for common sense. I thought Mr Davis , Chairman of the Airports Commission in his interview this morning on the BBC Radio 4 showed a very good grasp of all the issues involved.
Despite what Mr Johnson may say the other big practical factor behind all this is that business generally wants this airport expansion (Heathrow or Gatwick)up and running quickly so, although we are greatly concerned about global warming, at least this requirement for a swift incrase in capacity is another major factor against Mr Johnson's unsustainable proposal and which will mean he will find the Commission's recommendations very hard to reverse, despite all his words.
redkite
Martin, I do hope this is the end of these proposals but listening to the news this morning it is clear that Boris Johnson doesn't think so, basically saying that any new Government wouldn't take any account of the Commission's recommendations now they have dismissed this plan.
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