Representation by Nancy Hubbard
- Date submitted
- 25 October 2023
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
Judging by the sheer numbers of aircraft already flying in and out of Gatwick Airport it seems to me the sky above RH12 4DD is already extremely crowded. Pollution: It is not unusual for there to be a strong smell of aircraft fuel outside my home when the weather is damp. An indicator of the amount of pollution coming from the aircraft. This is a subject that the public are kept in the dark about. The effects on public health are not made known. Any suggestion that the airport is carbon neutral is laughable. There appears to be no consideration of the enormous amounts of traffic pollution associated with the Gatwick in addition to the aircraft pollution. Although the 'emergency' runway is being pushed as a second runway, it has been used pretty much as such for many years. It is difficult to see how pressing this into 'official' usage as a runway is more than window dressing and that it's supposed change of use can make the significant difference claimed unless flying hours are extended to the detriment of local residents. My suspicion is that once the 'emergency' runway has officially been designated a second runway that the argument will then be produced on the lines of, 'this runway was already there so we must have a third entirely new runway'. And of course, jam even more aircraft into the local skies.