Representation by David Charles Smith
- Date submitted
- 22 June 2023
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
I strongly oppose Luton Airport's application to increase passenger capacity. This would result in continued irreversible damage to local communities health and wellbeing, the environment, through pollution that would accelerate climate change, local residential amenity, local surface transport by road and rail, local schools, hospitals, places of worship, and other noise-sensitive sites. Faced with an environmental climate emergency, as we all are, further expansion at Luton Airport cannot be justified at all. My own experience of this airport's operations is that we have been constantly disturbed by low altitude noisy flights day and night for many years. This is affecting our health due to stress, anxiety and loss of sleep, especially during hot weather when we have to open windows at night. We cannot even enjoy our small garden during the day due to the noise and regular disturbance of aircraft overhead. I have regularly notified the airport's noise department about a large number of flights that are off-track and not adhering to the noise preferential routes (NPR), however no notice has been taken about my complaints at all. On top of this, Luton Airport have continued to breach condition 10 of planning permission 15/00950/VARCON, with apparent impunity, and I have previously submitted comments on the Luton Planning Portal on this matter. I believe the whole operation and excessive growth of this airport is driven by financial gain rather than reasonable, planned and sustainable growth, that takes notice of the detrimental impact such growth has on local communities, wildlife and the environment.