UK: Cliffe has “worst bird hazard” in the UK, according to government report
Plans to build a new airport on the Thames estuary could be cancelled because there is a serious danger of aircraft colliding with birds.
As reported by News From Abroad, the Government put forward proposals for a new airport at Cliffe, with four new runways and the capacity to handle some 110 million passengers a year, as part of last year’s consultation paper. Campaigners protested against the plans, pointing out that building the airport would mean the end for large areas of wetland that support a huge variety of bird life.
However, according to The Independent, a new survey by the Government states that the airport would face a worse bird hazard than any other in the UK, and that it would be extremely difficult to operate on the site. The newspaper says the Transport Secretary Alistair Darling will consider the report before making an announcement later in the year.
The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, for its part, told the newspaper the study endorsed its long-held view that “birds and planes just don’t mix”.
