Stansted expansion plans

Further to our earlier news items, we have now written to Uttlesford District Council, calling for the expansion application to be reviewed at national level, against national planning and environmental targets and for us to be given time to consider the thousands of pages of documentation.

You can read our letter here.

We are calling for more time to allow due consideration of the thousands of pages of documents submitted in support of the application. UDC has currently allowed only 6 weeks to submit comments, which also includes the Easter Holiday period. We have argued that this is little more time than would be allowed to consider a loft extension, and cannot be right for a major infrastructure project, resulting in a 44% increase in air traffic when compared to today’s levels.

Comments can be submitted via UDC’s website here.  There are also drop in events organised by the airport, details are here.

These events are timed to give, in the case of the final event, only one working day between the event and the deadline for submission of comments.

We have again objected to this undue haste to process the application. Even Highways England have said that they cannot meet the required deadline, and will not respond before 25th May.

However, without confirmation of a reconsideration by UDC of the process, we must assume that comments will close on 3rd April and anyone wishing to make a comment should therefore do so before this date.

Felsted Parish Council will be  making a submission that Stansted airport’s expansion plans must receive national determination against national air traffic plans and  environmental targets. It is wrong for this to receive only District level review. Furthermore, we shall state that the airport must first resolve the noise nuisance problems caused by the flightpath changes made in 2016, and which have resulted in a 20 fold increase in noise complaints.

You can also read more here on the SSE website, also calling for national determination of the application.