Bristol Airport’s expansion plan has been rejected by North Somerset council on environmental grounds.
North Somerset council’s Planning and Regulatory Committee rejected the airport’s proposal after a four-and-a-half-hour long meeting where both supporters and opponents of the plan were able to make their feelings known.
The proceedings were viewed by about 200 people split across two rooms at the Town Hall while more than 4,800 watched the debate live online.
The council’s procedure for applications of this scale is that the decision will be held over until a future meeting of the Planning and Regulatory Committee. If the decision is then ratified, the applicant will have six months to lodge an appeal which would then be heard at a public inquiry.
Councillor Don Davies, leader of the council, said, “What the committee has considered is that the detrimental effect of the expansion of the airport on this area and the wider impact on the environment outweighs the narrower benefits to airport expansion.”
Councillors voted 18-7, with one abstention, to reject the planning application.
Bristol Airport said in a statement, “This decision risks putting the brakes on the region’s economy by turning away airlines who want to serve the Southwest market, shutting the door to international trade and tourism at a time when the UK needs to show it is open for business.”
The dedicated Environment & Sustainability stream at this year’s Passenger Terminal CONFERENCE will discuss many of these issues. The full conference program can be found here.