Third runway pollution safeguards ‘not fit for purpose’

Government safeguards to reduce the impact of a third runway at Heathrow are "not fit for purpose", a report claimed today.

The London Assembly has "grave concerns" about the monitoring regime proposed by ministers in return for approving the new runway a year ago.

The runway is due to open by 2020 and will allow the number of flights at Heathrow to increase from 477,000 to 605,000 a year.

This could be increased to 702,000 flights a year by 2030 — equating to 135 million passengers a year — if environmental targets are met.

But the Assembly's environment committee report reveals "unmistakeable limitations" in the safeguards on noise, air quality and climate change. Labour environment committee chairman Murad Qureshi said: "We would question whether the suggested noise benchmark is fit for purpose and if the aviation emissions targets are achievable."

The committee's concerns included:

Using 2002 as the baseline for noise measurements — the last year when the very noisy Concorde was flying, which "distorts the picture significantly".

Areas around Heathrow are already in breach of EU air quality targets.

Responsibility for monitoring Heathrow is split between three Whitehall departments and several quangos, with nobody taking overall responsibility.

Gordon Brown was only able to head off a Cabinet revolt, led by Ed Miliband and Hilary Benn, over the expansion by imposing the safeguards.

The Tories have promised to scrap the third runway if they win the election. Boris Johnson's preference is for a £40billion airport in the Thames Estuary, described by critics as his maddest idea to date.

There are fears if Heathrow, now operating at 99 per cent capacity, was limited to two runways they would have to be used more intensively, meaning more night flights or an end to runway alternation, spreading more noise over a wider area of west London and Berkshire.

Richmond Park and North Kingston MP Susan Kramer, who has led the Lib-Dem campaign against the runway, said: "The Government must listen to the concerns of this committee and scrap its misguided plans for a third runway."