14 March 2020
We can stop AMP Capital’s planning application to expand Leeds Bradford Airport. To do that we need to let councillors across Leeds and on the West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) know the strength of opposition. The best way to do this is to go to a surgery and tell them in person. If you can’t do that, you can email them your views.
Here’s a link to find Leeds councillors details.
Here’s a link to find WYCA members - not all these people are Leeds councillors. So please adapt your email accordingly.
If you get a reply, please forward it to: GalbaUK@protonmail.com
GALBA is the Group for Action on Leeds Bradford Airport. We are local people and need your support! Email us if you can help with leafleting or anything else.
Tell them in your own words why you think LBA expansion should be stopped. Below are some key points about the climate impact of expansion. You might want to adapt some or all of them in what you say to your councillors. But don’t forget, there would also be more noise for people living under the flight path, more air pollution and more cars driving to the airport. Links to the sources of information below are given at the end.
Leeds Bradford Airport (LBA) wants to increase its passenger numbers from 4 million per year now to 7 million in 2030. (1) The airport is owned by AMP Capital, a large global investment company based in Sydney, Australia. To enable LBA’s expansion, AMP Capital will submit a planning application in ‘spring’ (date not yet known) seeking permission to extend nighttime flying by 1.5 hours and build a new passenger terminal. It’s important to understand that the purpose of these developments is to increase passenger numbers to 7 million by 2030.
The most important environmental impact of AMP Capital’s plan to expand LBA would be a huge increase in greenhouse gas emissions. These emissions are the cause of the climate emergency. Quite simply, doubling passenger numbers would mean doubling emissions (2), at a time when we should be drastically reducing them. Sir David King, the government’s former chief scientific adviser, has warned: “Whatever we do over the next 10 years on climate change will determine the future of humanity for the next 10,000 years”. (3)
The local authorities responsible for Stansted and Bristol airports have recently turned down expansion applications because of the damage they would cause to the climate. (4) This was followed by the highly significant Court of Appeal ruling on Heathrow’s third runway. (5) The Court ruled the government’s decision unlawful because: the Secretary of State failed to take into account the UK’s commitment to the Paris Agreement to limit global heating to well below 2C; and did not consider our commitment to achieve that by reducing our greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050. For the first time, a court has confirmed that the Paris Agreement target is legally binding.
The Court of Appeal reaffirmed the National Planning Policy Framework guidancethat any planning development must be sustainable: “The objective of sustainable development can be summarised as meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. The impact of LBA expansion on the climate crisis and its effect on future generations cannot be ignored.
The Court of Appeal judgment means that developers and local authorities must put the Paris Agreement and the Climate Change Act at the heart of policymaking and planning decisions. It means that they can be held to account under the law for the climate impact of their developments. So Leeds City Council must fully consider the greenhouse gas emissions that would result from LBA’s planning application. If they permit a development that does not comply with our commitment to the Paris Agreement and to reach net zero by 2050, they will face a legal challenge.
The UK Committee on Climate Change (a statutory body that advises national government) has warned: “Aviation is likely to be the largest emitting sector in the UK by 2050, even with strong progress on technology and limiting demand. Aviation also has climate warming effects beyond CO2 which it will be important to monitor and consider within future policies”. (6) Non-CO2 effects, including Nitrogen Oxides, water vapour and planes’ contrails, have a ‘radiative forcing’ effect, which makes global heating worse at high altitudes. This means that the total impact of flying on climate change is approximately double the purely CO2 effects.
A study published in the journal Nature (7) found that night-time flying accounts for 60%-80% of all ‘contrail radiative forcing’ from planes, despite accounting for just 25% of flights. That means night time flying is even worse for the climate. LBA wants to extend night time flying hours. The Court of Appeal ruled that the non-CO2 climate impacts must be taken into account and the precautionary principle should be applied. That is, if we already know that damage will be caused by a development, but the precise degree of damage is not known, measures should be adopted to prevent environmental harm.
The Dept for Transport (DfT) estimates that aviation could constitute approximately 25% of all UK emissions by 2050. (8) The Court of Appeal ruled that the impact of Heathrow expansion on the climate crisis beyond 2050 was ‘obviously relevant’ because its effects will continue beyond 2050. There should be no 2050 time limit when considering LBA’s expansion proposal.
Passenger growth must be limited to “at most 25%”. In September 2019, the UK Committee on Climate Change (a statutory body that advises national government) stated that we must limit aviation passenger growth to a maximum of 25% from 2018 to 2050. It said: “In the absence of a true zero-carbon plane, demand cannot continue to grow unfettered over the long-term. Our scenario reflects a 25% growth in demand by 2050 compared to 2018 levels.” (23) LBA wants to increase from 4 million passengers per year now to 7 million in 2030. (24) That’s an increase of 72% in just 10 years. This far exceeds the advice of the UK Committee on Climate Change.
Remember: all other regional airports also want to expand in excess of 25%. (25) So this would not simply mean Leeds getting a ‘bigger slice of pie’ while the UK as a whole remains within the 25% expansion limit. It would mean a major overall increase in aviation emissions, with Leeds contributing a disproportionately high amount. LBA’s planning application for extended night flights and a new terminal must be rejected.
Aviation White Paper due soon and Airport National Planning Statement ruled unlawful. The government postponed its Aviation White Paper in September 2019 to allow time for the latest advice from the UK Committee on Climate Change (a statutory body that advises national government) to be addressed. That advice was to limit passenger growth to at most 25% between 2018 and 2050. LBA wants to increase by 72%. (26) In the Queen’s Speech, the government announced its intention to publish an aviation White Paper in 2020. (27) The previous Secretary of State said the White Paper will address the advice from the UK Committee on Climate Change. (28)
The recent Court of Appeal decision on Heathrow ruled that the government’s Airport National Planning Statement is unlawful because it did not take account of the UK’s commitment to the Paris Agreement. National UK legislation commits the UK to reach net zero emissions by 2050. On 2 March 2020, aviation minister Kelly Tolhurst was asked in the House of Commons: “Can I ask her to be very clear that any expansion of any regional airport… must meet stringent environmental criteria on climate change, pollution and the rest? Will she make that point firmly at the Dispatch Box?” She replied: “Yes”. (29) It would be wrong to decide on LBA’s planning application before the Aviation White Paper is published and the before the implications of the Court of Appeal decision on Heathrow are translated into a new aviation policy statement.
Leeds City Council has the power and responsibility to decide. It is sometimes claimed that local authorities have no influence or control over airport expansion and it’s all the responsibility of national government. However the local authorities responsible for planning applications to expand Stansted and Bristol airports have recently decided to reject those applications because of their impact on the climate crisis. (31) Leeds City Council can and should do the same in respect of AMP Capital’s application to extend night flying hours and build a new terminal at LBA. It is not fair or reasonable to expect every other sector of the local economy to make deep reductions in emissions but to allow LBA to double its emissions.
The Court of Appeal’s judgment on Heathrow (32) found that the UK’s commitment to the Paris Agreement to limit global heating must be taken into account. Leeds City Council cannot ignore the fact that AMP Capital’s proposal to expand LBA would result in doubling its greenhouse gas emissions. The Council has the power and the responsibility to turn the words of its Climate Emergency Declaration into meaningful actions. Leeds City Council can show the world that Leeds leads on tackling the climate emergency. #LeedsbyExample
What does climate breakdown really mean? If you’re not sure what life would be like in 2050 if we don’t prevent climate breakdown, please read this extract from a book by Christina Figueres, the United Nations lead officer at the Paris Agreement climate negotiations. Whatever the alleged short term economic benefits of LBA expansion, this is what life will be like if we fail to reach zero carbon by 2050.
After describing the disastrous effects on the majority of the world, she explains: “Those living within stable countries may be physically safe, yes, but the psychological toll is mounting. With each new tipping point passed, they feel hope slipping away. There is no chance of stopping the runaway warming of our planet and no doubt we are slowly but surely heading towards some kind of collapse. And not just because it’s too hot.
Melting permafrost is also releasing ancient microbes that today’s humans have never been exposed to and, as a result, have no resistance to. Diseases spread by mosquitoes and ticks are rampant as these species flourish in the changed climate, spreading to previously safe parts of the planet, increasingly overwhelming us. Worse still, the public health crisis of antibiotic resistance has only intensified as the population has grown denser in habitable areas and temperatures continue to rise.” (33)
What could life be like in 2050? By way of contrast, Christina Figueres describes how things could be in 2050 - if we make the right decisions now.
“When the alarm bells rang in 2020, thanks in large part to the youth movement, we realised that we suffered from too much consumption, competition, and greedy self-interest. Our commitment to these values and our drive for profit and status had led us to steamroll our environment. As a species, we were out of control and the result was the near-collapse of our world.
We emerged from the climate crisis as more mature members of the community of life, capable of not only restoring ecosystems but also of unfolding our dormant potentials of human strength and discernment. Humanity was only ever as doomed as it believed itself to be. Vanquishing that belief was our true legacy.” (34)
LBA passenger increase to 2030, see table in this article: https://www.carbonbrief.org/guest-post-planned-growth-of-uk-airports-not-consistent-with-net-zero-climate-goal
Leeds Climate Commission aviation position paper, December 2019, Figure 2 on p.8: https://www.leedsclimate.org.uk/sites/default/files/Leeds%20Climate%20Commission%20Position%20Paper%20on%20Aviation%20FINAL.pdf and University of Leeds
Sir David King warning: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-48069663
Stansted airport expansion rejected: https://www.residents4u.org/2020/01/24/stansted-airport-expansion-refused/ Bristol airport expansion rejected: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-51447705
Court of Appeal Heathrow decision: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51658693
Committee on Climate Change, p1 of advice letter to government, September 2019: https://www.theccc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Letter-from-Lord-Deben-to-Grant-Shapps-IAS.pdf
Nature report on effects of night flying: https://www.carbonbrief.org/explainer-challenge-tackling-aviations-non-co2-emissions]
DfT forecast aviation produces 25% of all emissions by 2050 - Aviation 2050 (December 2018), para 1.24: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/769695/aviation-2050-web.pdf
Leeds Climate Change Citizens Jury, recommendation 9: https://www.leedsclimate.org.uk/leeds-citizens-jury-recommendations-published
Leeds Carbon Reduction Roadmap: https://www.leedsclimate.org.uk/sites/default/files/Leeds%20Carbon%20Roadmap%20v4.pdf
Leeds Climate Commission: https://www.leedsclimate.org.uk/about-leeds-climate-commission
Leeds Climate Commission aviation position paper, December 2019, Figure 2 on p.8: https://www.leedsclimate.org.uk/sites/default/files/Leeds%20Climate%20Commission%20Position%20Paper%20on%20Aviation%20FINAL.pdf and University of Leeds research: https://theconversation.com/we-cant-expand-airports-after-declaring-a-climate-emergency-lets-shift-to-low-carbon-transport-instead-120740
LCC Core Strategy - sections 5.5.31-5.5.35: https://www.leeds.gov.uk/Local%20Plans/Adopted%20Core%20Strategy/Consolidated%20Core%20Strategy%20with%20CSSR%20Policies%20Sept%202019.pdf
Committee on Climate Change, advice letter to government, September 2019: https://www.theccc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Letter-from-Lord-Deben-to-Grant-Shapps-IAS.pdf
Climate Emergency Update Report to LCC Exec Board, January 2020: https://democracy.leeds.gov.uk/documents/s198403/Climate%20Emergency%20Cover%20Report%20191219.pdf
Leeds Climate Commission airport position paper, December 2019, p2: https://www.leedsclimate.org.uk/sites/default/files/Leeds%20Climate%20Commission%20Position%20Paper%20on%20Aviation%20FINAL.pdf
Committee on Climate Change, p2 of advice letter to government, September 2019: https://www.theccc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Letter-from-Lord-Deben-to-Grant-Shapps-IAS.pdf
Leeds Climate Commission aviation position paper, December 2019, p2: https://www.leedsclimate.org.uk/sites/default/files/Leeds%20Climate%20Commission%20Position%20Paper%20on%20Aviation%20FINAL.pdf
LBA passenger increase to 2030, see table in this article: https://www.carbonbrief.org/guest-post-planned-growth-of-uk-airports-not-consistent-with-net-zero-climate-goal
Leeds Climate Commission aviation position paper, December 2019, Figure 1, p7: https://www.leedsclimate.org.uk/sites/default/files/Leeds%20Climate%20Commission%20Position%20Paper%20on%20Aviation%20FINAL.pdf
Yorkshire Evening Post: https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/news/traffic-and-travel/leeds-bradford-airport-terminal-emissions-are-grains-sand-compared-flight-impact-says-climate-commission-chairman-1374255
Leeds Climate Commission aviation position paper, December 2019, Figure 1 p7: https://www.leedsclimate.org.uk/sites/default/files/Leeds%20Climate%20Commission%20Position%20Paper%20on%20Aviation%20FINAL.pdf
Committee on Climate Change, p11 of advice letter to government, September 2019: https://www.theccc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Letter-from-Lord-Deben-to-Grant-Shapps-IAS.pdf
LBA passenger increase to 2030, see table in this article: https://www.carbonbrief.org/guest-post-planned-growth-of-uk-airports-not-consistent-with-net-zero-climate-goal
All regional UK airports plan to expand: https://airqualitynews.com/2020/02/18/revealed-every-uk-airport-has-plans-to-expand/
Committee on Climate Change, p11 of advice letter to government, September 2019: https://www.theccc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Letter-from-Lord-Deben-to-Grant-Shapps-IAS.pdf
Queen’s Speech, October 2019: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/839370/Queen_s_Speech_Lobby_Pack_2019_.pdf
The Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Mr Greg Clark, stated that ‘We have followed the advice of the Committee on Climate Change and our plans for net zero cover the whole economy, including international aviation and shipping. We await the committee’s advice on how to legislate.’ Hansard HC (12 June 2019) Volume 661 Column 682 Net Zero Emissions Target.
Transport Minister answer to question about Heathrow judgment: https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2020-03-02/debates/6A9FD8BE-293E-4DDF-AE9D-BC84EE909724/AirportExpansion
EU research into offsetting: https://ec.europa.eu/clima/sites/clima/files/ets/docs/clean_dev_mechanism_en.pdf
Stansted airport expansion rejected: https://www.residents4u.org/2020/01/24/stansted-airport-expansion-refused/ Bristol airport expansion rejected: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-51447705
Court of Appeal Heathrow decision: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51658693
Extract from The Future We Choose by Christina Figueres in the Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/feb/15/worst-case-scenario-2050-climate-crisis-future-we-choose-christiana-figueres-tom-rivett-carnac?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
Extract from The Future We Choose by Christina Figueres in the Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/feb/15/best-case-scenario-2050-climate-crisis-future-we-choose-christiana-figueres-tom-rivett-carnac?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
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