Blogposts tagged 'Heathrow'

Slideshow: highlights from the 3rd runway campaign

Posted by jossc - 16 June 2010 at 9:17am - 0 Comments

The battle over a 3rd runway for Heathrow became an iconic struggle between those of us who know the climate change threat is deadly serious, and those who preferred to gamble our collective future in search of short-term profit. And when that latter group includes such heavyweights as the Department for Transport and the British Airports Authority, you know you're in for a fight - even when the science is on your side.

In the event it took three years of hard campaigning, and the building of a huge coalition of civil society (including residents' groups Hacan and NoTRAG, local councils, Climate Camp, WWF and RSPB) to bring the runway plans down.

Article tagged as: airplot, aviation expansion, co2 emissions, heathrow, slideshows, successes

Heathrow third runway cancelled: we won!

Posted by jossc - 13 May 2010 at 10:20am - 13 Comments
by-nc. Credit: John Cobb / Greenpeace

Handing in the Airplot deed at No 10 this morning

Fantastic news - climate-wrecking plans for a third runway at Heathrow airport have been axed.

The Cameron/Clegg government confirmed yesterday evening that it will not only scrap the third runway at Heathrow, but also refuse additional runways at Gatwick and Stansted. So all our Airplot campaigning has finally won out - and a huge thank you is due to all you Airplotters, and everyone who's written to their MP or taken part in one of the many protests demanding that the plan be shelved.

Article tagged as: airplot, aviation, heathrow, successes, third runway, videos

The Airplot Competition: we have a winner!

Posted by jossc - 13 May 2010 at 9:25am - 6 Comments

This morning we're proud to announce the winner of the Airplot Contest - our competition to find the ideal structure to fortify the Airplot so that, if the police come to turf us out, we can peacefully resist them. There were two categories - one for architects and architecture students to come up with some practical solutions for how we can defend the land, and the other open to everyone to let their imaginations off the leash.

Article tagged as: airplot, aviation, heathrow, third runway, videos

Get your own bit of earth for Earth Day and help stop the third runway

Posted by tracy - 21 April 2010 at 11:24am - 2 Comments

Thursday's Earth Day and what better way to mark the occasion than by getting your own piece of  earth that will help block the third runway at Heathrow?

Last year we bought a piece of land slap bang in the middle of the proposed site for third runway at Heathrow and we'd like you to join us as a beneficial owner on the deed. We've got to close the deeds by April 30th so this is pretty much your last chance to join. The land is already shared by over 80,000 owners and we need you to help us reach 100,000 by the end of the month.

Article tagged as: airplot, aviation, climate change, earth day, heathrow, third runway

Third Runway plan looking more like a deceased parrot every day

Posted by Vicky - 21 April 2010 at 11:02am - 2 Comments
Celebrations ouside the Courts of Justice after last month's ruling

So we went to the High Court for the last time yesterday morning to tie up the loose ends of the Heathrow Judicial Review. Compared to the excitement of the day when the judge delivered his ruling last month, things were a bit more low key, although important nonetheless.

The judge had to decide who should pick up the tab for the case. Unfortunately for the current Transport Secretary, Lord Adonis, he's going to have dig deep into his pockets because the judge ordered the government to pay 60% of our legal bills.

Article tagged as: heathrow, judicial review, third runway

Only three weeks to get your piece of Airplot!

Posted by davewalsh - 8 April 2010 at 9:21am - 0 Comments
Greenpeace Airplot campaign
All rights reserved. Credit: Greenpeace / Airside
Airplot - the plot to stop a third runway at Heathrow

There’s just three weeks left before we finalise the deed of trust for Airplot; the names of all Airplotters will be included, and everyone will be issued with a certificate of beneficial ownership. If you're not signed up yet, now's the time. If you are, then please ask your friends and family to join the plot, along with Greenpeace, Emma Thompson, Alistair McGowan and Zac Goldsmith and 77,500 other people!

By the time the deeds are finalised on May 1st, we aim to have 100,000 airplotters. We need your help to achieve this, so that the next UK government gets the message: that it's answerable to a huge body of people that oppose Heathrow's third runway.

Article tagged as: aircraft, airplot, climate change, emissions, heathrow

Updated: Heathrow Third Runway Slammed by High Court

Posted by davewalsh - 26 March 2010 at 11:47am - 6 Comments

Campaigners leave the High Court victorious this morning after the result of a judicial review into the planned third runway at Heathrow declared that the plans were 'untenable'.

UPDATED 20 April 2010: Fantastic news! Both the climate and common sense have scored a major victory at the High Court today, where the Government's plans for a 3rd runway at Heathrow have been dealt a huge blow.

Article tagged as: airplot, climate change, heathrow, high court, judicial review, third runway

Aviation lobbyist admits Heathrow could be a white elephant

Posted by christian - 24 February 2010 at 1:38pm - 0 Comments

We always thought that the government's economic case for the third runway at Heathrow was flawed. Particularly so given their plan to only allow use of half of the runway's capacity if environmental targets weren't met.

Article tagged as: climate change, heathrow, heathrow review, judicial review, third runway

Heathrow Judicial Review - Wrap up, updated

Posted by christian - 23 February 2010 at 7:09pm - 2 Comments

UPDATE: Thursday - Day 3

The third and final day in the high court turned out to be the best one so far.

The government's barristers continued to try to defend the statistics that the Department for Transport had used to support the case for a third runway, and it turned out to be a bit of a minefield for them. (Perhaps because the statistics were basically pretty shoddy.)

Article tagged as: climate change, heathrow, judicial review

Heathrow judicial review gets underway tomorrow

Posted by christian - 22 February 2010 at 3:23pm - 6 Comments

This time we're making arguments in court, rather than on top of a plane.

Just over a year ago, at the start of 2009, transport secretary Geoff Hoon gave the government's approval for a third runway at Heathrow airport. It would be accompanied, he said, by "the toughest climate change regime for aviation of any country in the world".

Cleaner planes, tougher regulation, green slots for takeoff and landing - the secretary of state was keen to broadcast the runway's green credentials. But it didn't make a lot of sense to me then - and it still doesn't.

Anyway, I'll get to spend a whole lot more time thinking about it this week, because tomorrow I'm off to court to report on a legal challenge to the controversial third runway decision.

Greenpeace is part of a coalition mounting a legal challenge to the government's Heathrow decision. Twelve other groups are also backing the challenge, including local councils, other NGOs, residents' groups - altogether, millions of people are represented.

In front of Lord Justice Carnwath, our lawyers will claim that the consultation the government held over the plans for Heathrow expansion was fundamentally flawed. They'll argue that the decision to expand Heathrow is at odds with the UK's overall climate change targets, and they'll also contend that the government hasn't made good enough plans to ensure there's enough public transport to serve an expanded airport.

It's a trio of challenges to the way the decision was made - and if the ruling goes in our favour on any one of the three points, the government's decision to proceed with the runway will be overturned, which is obviously going to lead to a pretty major rethink in transport policy.

We'll see what happens, but it's sure to be a comprehensive thrashing-through for the issues around the third runway, and I'm lucky enough to get to sit through the whole thing, in order to report back to you all.

Wish me luck... (And look out for updates from the court, or just outside the court, through the week.)

Article tagged as: climate change, heathrow, heathrow review, judicial review
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