Representation by Mrs Lynne Goff
- Date submitted
- 6 October 2018
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
I would to register as an interested party regarding Manston DCO with Reference to Noise and Pollution.
Thanet is a peninsular surrounded on 3 sides by water and is quite heavily populated with residential estates. I live at the west end of the Nethercourt estate in Ramsgate which is only 1.3 km from the end of the runway, closer than any other cargo hub in the UK. I also live directly under the flight path. When Manston was owned by Infratil every plane coming and going was loud and disturbing without exception. Fortunately at that time night flights were not allowed as they were considered to be too noisy and would reduce the sleep, and the pollution would impair the health and well-being of the residents. This helped with the control of noise at night. RSPs DCO want to start with 17,000 flights a year and we are assured by the North Thanet MP that night flights would not be part of the plan. Their plan going forward is to increase to 83,000 flights per year, 227 flights per day, 14 flights per hour without night flights. How can the human body withstand such continuous noise and pollution abuse? I do not want my sleep disturbed neither do I want the pollution that these heavy planes create. Only on Kent News this week they were saying that the life expectancy for Thanet has decreased considerably and yet it has been confirmed by RSP that our health will be greatly affected by this cargo hub re-opening – how can this be allowed to happen? Manston cannot be compared to other cargo hub airports around the country as their geography is not surrounded by populated residential areas as Thanet has. Another concern I am deeply worried about is the amount of vehicle congestion. Tankers and Lorries will be needed constantly to transport the cargo from Manston around the UK. We have no major motorways out of Thanet only dual carriageways which are already inadequate to cope with the ever increasing population that East Kent has to deal with. The constructions of these roads are barely enough to support the existing traffic as Thanet is as far east as it can possibly be and the road structure insufficient to take the continuance of heavy good vehicles. The exhaust pollution added to the plane pollution will without doubt make Thanet a poisonous place to live and exist. I live in a beautiful part of the country with many attractions and a host of wild life peculiar to this area I don’t want it spoilt and ruined. The area has been working very hard to attract new businesses, new visitors and improve our life expectancy not reduce it. So I ask you to think very carefully about the residents at the end of the runway, the children’s vulnerability and the health of the residents of Ramsgate whose lives and well-being will be blighted by Manston re-opening.