Representation by Mariette Castellino
- Date submitted
- 18 September 2018
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
I am very concerned about this application to bring an operational airport back to Ramsgate. I have lived here since October 2011 and visited local friends before moving here. Although not on the immediate flight path, we always had to stop conversation when a plane was travelling overhead. The noise was far too loud to hear each other speak. At that time, there were less than 500 flights pa. Now the applicant is suggesting up to 17,000 flights pa.
How will school children hear teachers and deal with regular interruptions to lessons? I heard from a local Head Teacher that school results have improved significantly since flights were stopped. And I have seen research that says school results improved for children in east Munich when the airport moved from east Munich to west Munich – whilst results fell for children in west Munich. Thanet children already live in an area of social deprivation. Any further addition to their problems means they will be a drain on the tax system because poor school results means they're less likely to earn sufficient income to stay off benefits.
Though the applicant “neither wants nor needs” night flights, cargo flights are usually at night. I am very worried by the threat of night flights – with no limit except a noise budget. On the rare occasion when there was a night flight in the past, my sleep was disrupted and I found it hard to get back to sleep.
What happens to those who have to go to work the day after they have been woken by several flights through the night? There is significant research about sleep deprivation and its negative effect on performance. It means that local people are more likely to lose jobs because of poor performance from lack of sleep. Just as Thanet has begun attracting workers from London to live here and contribute to building the local economy, there’s a huge risk they will be unable to maintain their income in order to spend in our local economy. They too could become a burden to the tax system.
I live in a new build house. The applicant proposes to provide just £4000 towards sound insulation. They say this will only be offered to people experiencing sound levels significantly in excess of what government has determined is “noticeable and intrusive” noise. What will happen to people who live in listed or older buildings where sound insulation is not possible? My architect friend tells me that insulating old buildings causes damp because they were built to have air blowing through them. Ramsgate has a very high level of old buildings. In fact, we’ve recently been given some historic status as a town.
Furthermore, a friend of mine phoned Stansted Airport and was told that they are not working to capacity with cargo flights – and are looking for more business. Therefore I wonder how it can be in the national interest to open an airport that will be competing for already limited cargo flights.
I suggest that deeming this application to be in the national interest would create more problems for the nation in the longer run than it would solve.