Heathrow: air pollution expansion?

The Department for Transport is consulting on an Equalities Impact Assessment of Adding Capacity at Heathrow Airport - looking at the effect on the local community of any potential expansion at Heathrow. The Government was forced to consult following a legal threat from Friends of the Earth.

According to local MP John McDonnell, who has been campaigning against expansion, "it is clear that the runway proposal will be in serious breach of the European Commission's air pollution legislation and following meetings with EU Commission representatives it is equally clear that the Commission has the power and will to act to enforce its new pollution limits".

This consultation therefore has the potential to kill Heathrow expansion plans dead in the water, and the Government is still wading through the 70,000 responses to the original consultation, which closed in February 2008, on expanding Heathrow capacity.

The consultation document reveals that an initial assessment, by a DfT-commissioned private consultancy, shows that ethnic minorities and those from income deprived areas would be "likely to experience significant adverse impacts" in noise pollution if extra flights or a third runway were approved.

The effects of air pollution from extra flights are even more extreme, affecting "twelve wards where children are disproportionately represented . . . furthermore ten pre-schools, twelve primary schools and two secondary schools are likely to be negatively affected by NO2 increases". If a third runway is added, it is "likely to result in negative health, educational and development effects for children in the affected wards and schools. Negative second round impacts for overall deprivation levels may be experienced".

John Stewart of the campaign HACAN Clearskies, said, "The one clear message is that a huge number of people from minority communities will be badly affected if the expansion of Heathrow goes ahead. But this consultation fails to spell out just how it will affect people. That is the more important part. It gives every sign of being a rushed consultant document commissioned in haste by a government department which was forced into doing the assessment by the threat of legal action".

For those who care about their environment and community in west London, it is essential you respond to this consultation by the 9th November deadline. The full consultation document can be downloaded from the DfT website.