LONDON, Jan 20 (Reuters) – A legal challenge to Britain’s plan to expand Gatwick Airport, the country’s second largest, began on Tuesday, as campaigners sought to block the project on climate change grounds.
Britain’s transport minister Heidi Alexander approved the opening of a second runway in September, hoping that converting a back-up runway into one that is fully operational will allow thousands of extra flights and drive economic growth.
But campaign group Communities Against Gatwick Noise Emissions, or CAGNE, said officials who approved the expansion of the airport, situated 30 miles (48 km) south of London, had failed to properly assess its impact on Britain’s climate change goals.
The government has said the increasing use of sustainable aviation fuel means airport enlargements are not incompatible with its net-zero targets. It has therefore backed a new runway at Heathrow, the country’s biggest hub, and at Gatwick.
Airports have struggled to expand in the densely populated southeast England in recent decades, encountering opposition from communities worried about noise and pollution. An earlier plan to build a new runway at Heathrow was scrapped in 2010.
The plan at Gatwick involves moving the backup runway by 12 metres (39 feet) to meet safety standards for both runways to operate and allow for millions of new passengers by the 2030s, boosting trade and tourism and creating 14,000 jobs.
CAGNE says that the harm the expansion will cause to local communities will far outweigh the economic benefits.
A judgment is expected at a later date. Gatwick is 50.01% owned by France’s VINCI Airports.
(Reporting by Sarah Young; editing by Barbara Lewis)
