Campaigners were 'dismayed' to hear that Bristol Airport’s plans to expand by two million passengers a year have been approved by the planning inspectorate after the recent three-month appeal inquiry.
They believe the decision 'flies in the face of the evidence that was presented to the inquiry by climate experts and local residents'. It also 'makes a mockery of the planning decision' taken by North Somerset Council and the expressed opinions of the local MPs and surrounding councils.
Stephen Clarke from Bristol Airport Action Network (BAAN) said: "It means that the owners of Bristol Airport , the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan, can now start to put in place their plans to have more than 20,000 extra planes a year to fly into the airport; this will lead to massive amounts of extra carbon in the delicate high atmosphere, an extra 10,000 plus car journeys on the congested roads around the airport and many extra night flights disturbing the sleep of local residents.
"It means that the airport and the planning inspectorate have totally ignored the climate crisis we are currently in. Some of the promises that were made at COP26 climate talks in Glasgow only a couple of months ago have already been broken and the members of BAAN are outraged at this decision.
"This is not the end of the story though; BAAN consider that the process and the decision taken may well have been unlawful under national and international law and we are taking legal advice to see what action can be taken to stop this self-destructive development."
Tarisha Finnegan Clarke also from BAAN said: "Bristol Airport (BA) are certainly world-class at one thing; greenwash. That is, they say they care about the local community and the ecological crisis whilst all the time they go against the communities wishes and increase harmful toxic emissions.
"They say that electric and hydrogen planes will save the day, despite the contrary evidence from scientists and engineers. They claim to be net-zero but they don't include the emissions from the aircraft in their calculations.
"They even say people will be healthier if this expansion is allowed to go ahead. It is unforgivable that the Government’s Inspectorate has been apparently taken in by Bristol Airport’s self-serving lies and exaggerations. Nothing will be healthier because of this expansion other than the airport’s wallet.
"We will continue to fight these damaging plans on behalf of local residents and those suffering from the effects of climate change nationally and around the globe."
The airport's chief executive, Dave Lees, welcomed the decision.
He said: “The decision is excellent news for our region’s economy, allowing us to create thousands of new jobs in the years ahead and provide more choice for our customers, supporting inbound tourism, and reducing the millions of road journeys made to London airports each year.
“We will now push ahead with our multi-million-pound plans for net zero operations by 2030 and look forward to working with stakeholders and the community to deliver sustainable growth.”
Richard Baxter from BAAN and Bristol Greenpeace added: "Last November, Prime Minister, Boris Johnson warned world leaders at the COP26 climate summit that it is now “one minute to midnight” in the race to prevent global heating from surpassing a critical threshold.
"He called for immediate action yet he presides over a government that is seriously failing UK citizens in tackling the problem.
"Reducing carbon emissions is an urgent priority over the next decade for all sectors of industry and it needs to start now, not in several years time in the hope that technology and offsetting emissions will do the trick. Bristol Airport is gambling with our long term future in return for short-term profits.
"We feel the odds are against them achieving their flimsy promises. The only sure way to reduce carbon emissions this decade and achieve local and national targets is to operate less flights."
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