Aviation Day of Action

Saturday 10 June will see action all across Europe. In West London this will of course centre on Heathrow. Noise, air pollution, traffic, the threat to local communities from the proposed third runway – all these are causes for concern and have been well publicised.

Less in the public eye is the contribution that air traffic makes to climate change. Aviation is the fastest growing source of climate change emission. Passenger numbers are rising fast and continued growth on this scale will make it virtually impossible to meet our long-term climate targets. Aircraft from Heathrow alone emit some 2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide each year. But the Government is still supporting airport expansion.

We'd like to get our message across on 10 June.

Some good news? The Government recently climbed down over its plans to increase night flights at Heathrow in order to avoid defeat over key clauses of its Civil Aviation Bill. Transport Minister Derek Twigg announced that the number of night flights between 11.30pm and 6am will remain at 16 per night for the next six years.

More information on the campaign against airport expansion can be found by visiting www.airportwatch.org.uk

AirportWatch is an umbrella organisation whose members and supporters include the Aviation Environment Federation, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, the Campaign to Protect Rural England, Transport 2000, the Woodland Trust, the National Society for Clean Air and Environmental Protection, the National Trust and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds as well as many community groups protesting at expansion of airports around the country.

AirportWatch, Broken Wharf House, 2 Broken Wharf, London EC4V 3DT Tel: 020 7248 2227