Representation by Peter Scott
- Date submitted
- 7 October 2018
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
I write as a father of three children, owner of a listed building, and resident of Ramsgate who’s lived here while the previous incarnations of the airport were operational, and as someone who suffers from a degenerative heart condition.
I strongly oppose the granting of a DCO 24/7 Freight Hub at Manston for the following reasons:
Night Flights There appears to be mis-information about night flights, and discrepancies between what was presented by RSP at their consultation to the public and local media and what appears in their business plan. While they claim they have no plans to introduce night flights it is at the heart of what they put forward to secure cargo business, allowing QC4 planes to fly in during the night period. Incidentally, the same QC4 planes are not permitted to be scheduled, on noise grounds, for the night quota period at Heathrow.
Noise assessment RSP have suggested Manston is capable of handling 83,000 ATMs annually, yet they are basing their “worst case” noise assessment on a figure of 17,000 ATMs. Since there is no cap on the number of ATMs the figure of 17,000 is not the “worst case”.
Health and Well-Being Manston is only 1.3km from the runway Ramsgate requiring planes to pass over only hundreds of feet above rooftops. I live in a listed building that does not allow double glazing so would be subjected to the worst effects of the noise particularly at night. While the airport was open the night flights we endured woke everyone in the house and the stress caused meant getting back to sleep was problematic. I have recently been diagnosed with [Redacted] and stress and disrupted sleep are two exacerbating factors which would effectively force me from living in my house should the cargo hub be permitted to operate.
My children’s health and education I have 3 children living with me who are educated at one of the schools directly under the flight path. When previously operational their lessons were severely impacted by the noise of overflying aircraft, when the teacher had to stop activities until the noise diminished. Added to this I’m concerned about the effect on their learning should they be repeatedly be woken throughout the night. Studies show that long term memory, reading and speech perception are been impaired for children living and educated near an airport.
Beyond my house and family I’m also concerned about the impact on Ramsgate and the surrounding area:
Environmental concerns The salt marshes in neighbouring Pegwell are recognised as rare and important habitats for migratory birds. Air pollution from air traffic affects a wide area, this and the increased road traffic connected with a freight operation will have a detrimental effect on this habitat.
Tourism Tourism is on the increase since the airport closed, providing much needed income for local people. The airport would decimate our burgeoning tourist industry with resultant job losses.