Representation by Anne Doucet
- Date submitted
- 26 September 2018
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
EONOMIC VIABILITY
I really doubt the viability of the actual project based on the little reseach I have done about cargohub and growth projection for the future. Other airports/cargo hubs in the country are already planning an expention and would make Manston redondant.
Benefits
It looks to me that Ramsgate area which is directly concerned as the whole towns lies underneath the flight path stand to loose a lot, wheter the project works or fail8 Works, then the whole town suffert from noise pollution etc....will explain later Fails, then land that could have been used for building much needed houses, with the idea of a kind of garden city with local amenities disappear and houses need to be built on green land without infracstructure and loss of agricultural land when it might be sorely needed after Brexit. I read in the local news paper that a planning permission for an extra care sheltered housing will remain current until decision on the DCO is taken. If DCO is granted it will take a long time before another land is found a lot of vulnerable people will suffer
Manston history has shown that all other commertial venture in Manston have failed because it is a poor catchment area, and unless billions and billions of monies are invested in changing the roads and train connections nothing will change.
POLLUTION_ NOISE AND ECONOMICAL DAMAGES TO THE TOWN
I was here in Ramsgate when Manston was opened and thought the amount of flights traffic was newhere close to what RSP is anticipating to get the airport going, it was enought to grandly affect the quality of life of people living in town. If one was outside when a plane was coming in, all conversation had to stop because of the noise, windows rattling, house shaking. I could just see the pilots in the cockipt and waive
The town in 2013 was rather poor and decrepit looking whilst now one can really see a regeneration taking place and the town people are making quite an improvement on the town. Also, all the articles I have read about planes pollution report an increase of illness - mainly respiratory on the local population. Thanet being recognized as still a deprived area witha high number of ill people if that pollution raise the level of illness it will be a big burden on a already stretched to the limit NHS system. And one has also to take into consideration the massive increase of lorry traffic on an already burdened road system and so an increase of pollution, at a time when air pollution by diesel fumes is widely recognized in increasing health issues.
JOBS
A cargo hub is not known for creating loads of jobs from what I can gather from my readings. I know by experience - I have been woking as a volonteer at the Ramsgate Visitor Center for the past 4 years - and have seen the number of out of town visitors either from the UK or farther afield, Europe, UK New Zealand...coming to Ramsgate and being entrhalled by the charm of the town. A cargo hub with planes flying low directly above the Royal Harbour would put an end to that and the loss of jobs from restaurants pubs closing down because they would be loosing a big chuck of their business would soon mean more jobs being lost than created by the airport. And add to that a big exodus of all the DFL (Down from London) retiries that came down and bought houses here and spend their monies in the local economy moving out would really pull Ramsgate back down in the dump where it was when the airport was working
I could still talk about the impact on the natural reserved that are an European and Uk conservation area and the destruction of the historical buildings but I have already taken enough of your time
Last closing word: please don't allow Ramsgate to be the victim of another "Aberdeen Golf Course" disaster like
Thank you for your time in reading my representation
Anne Doucet