Bristol Airport expansion given the green light
The expansion of Bristol Airport will go ahead, a High Court judge has ruled.
North Somerset Council rejected the expansion in 2020 on environmental grounds but that decision was later overruled by the government agency.
The expansion will see the airport increase its capacity by 20% from ten million to 12 million passengers a year and flights by 10,420 to almost 86,000 a year.
The terminal will be made bigger and a multi-storey car park will be built to hold as many as 2,500 cars. The airport also wants to improve bus routes.
The Bristol Airport Action Network (BAAN) have been appealing against the Planning Inspectorate's decision to allow the expansion and says it is "extremely disappointed" after today's result (31 January).
Stephen Clarke from BAAN said: "The government has policies in place which are designed to encourage the growth of airports and the number of people wanting to fly.
"This shows a total disregard for the climate emergency we are in."
Another member of the group, Jackie Head who lives in Chew Valley said “The decision is devastating and will take a while to process but one thing that is clear is this: If this is right in law then our laws are wrong.
"What use are these laws if they cannot protect future life on this planet?
"I know we will regroup and fight on. Bristol Airport needs to know that we are playing the long game and will not stop until justice and fairness in aviation are achieved.”
Carla Denyer, the Leader of the Green Party said: "Bristol airport’s unnecessary expansion will mean thousands of extra flights which will produce one million tonnes of CO2 equivalents every year, right at the point we most need to be reducing our emissions.
"Not to mention more traffic, noise and air pollution for local people, and it will risk harming endangered local species. All this in face of clear local opposition.
“In the real world, there is no such thing as green aviation or carbon-neutral jet fuel. We must listen to the scientists, not the airports.”
The appeal argued that planning inspectors were wrong to ignore the impact a bigger airport would have on climate change.
Expansion plans - a timeline
Bristol Airport announced the plans in 2018
North Somerset Council rejected the proposals in February 2020, despite its own officers saying they should be recommended for approval
Bristol Airport's subsequent appeal to the planning inspectorate was then successful in February 2022
But the inspectorate, which is an agency of the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, says a local planning decision cannot overturn national government policy.
Bristol Airport told ITV News that the decision will create hundreds of new jobs across the region and add an estimated £430 million to the South West’s economy.
"The decision is excellent news for our region’s economy, allowing us to create up to 5,000 new jobs, deliver more international destinations for the South West and South Wales, and invest hundreds of millions of pounds to improve the customer experience.
"We will do this while working towards our ambitious target of net zero carbon operations by 2030 and we look forward to working with stakeholders and the community to deliver our vision to be everyone’s favourite airport.”
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