Clown makes a serious point

An irate clown was in no mood for jokes when he arrived at Manston airport on Friday to highlight the "circus" over night-time flying. Sporting a wig, tartan suit and painted clown face, protester Malcolm Kirkaldie attended a meeting of the Kent International Airport Consultative Committee.

Mr Kirkaldie, a former committee member before he resigned in disgust this year, said Thanet council's failure to properly monitor night flights had made a mockery of the 106 agreement with New Zealand-based operators Infratil. He said:

"Given the recent events at the Airport Working Party and the admission of certain failures in the 106 agreement and monitoring, it has turned into a bit of a circus – so I thought how appropriate to dress up as a clown."

A main issue at the meeting was the airport's delay in submitting a revised policy on night flights to the council so it could go to public consultation. Claims by airport managing director Charles Buchanan that a new policy would be handed to the council "imminently and shortly" were greeted by laughter from members of the public in attendance. When Conservative Canterbury councillor Peter Vickery-Jones asked about the revised policy, Mr Buchanan said:

"It will be completed imminently, but I can't be specific. The report is still being finalised."

Committee chairman Paul Twyman said the airport was in need of a clearer timeline. He said:

"'Imminently' is as long as a piece of string. The consultation will take some time and Thanet District Council must take time to consider all views."

Council leader Bob Bayford, who sits on the committee as a representative of the council, said the 12-week consultation would be "wide-ranging and unbiased" but he attracted groans from the audience when he said the council was carrying out the consultation despite "not being under any obligation". At the end of the meeting most questions and remarks from the public concerned night flights.

Commenting on the usefulness of the gathering, a very serious Mr Kirkaldie said that it was "weak".

MAG quits KIACC as noise worries are 'ignored'

One of the groups on the committee overseeing operations at Manston airport has quit, claiming the airport's owners have been inflexible over environmental concerns.

The Kent International Airport Consultative Committee is made up of representatives from communities around the airport, including parish and district councillors.

Last week Malcolm Kirkaldie announced the resignation of the Manston Action Group (Mag). A statement from Mag read:

"The consultative committee has been treated with contempt and, in consequence, has failed to exert any influence over the legitimate environmental concerns of local residents. We have no time to waste on pointless meetings, and we no longer want our membership of the committee to constrain us in countering the pro-night-flight propaganda campaign which is being conducted through the local media."

Mr Kirkaldie believes that noise monitoring at the airport falls short of the statutory level, something denied by Thanet council and Infratil, which owns the airport.

IoT Gazette 1st Jul 2011

Decision nears on runway waste plan

The Environment Agency will make a decision next month on plans to allow drainage of runway waste into Pegwell Bay.

The government body invited residents to view the application made by Infratil, the owners of Manston airport, at a meeting in Ramsgate last week.

Infratil wants to upgrade the existing surface water drainage pipeline. If approved, the airport will install an interceptor tank capable of removing runoff water from the taxiways, aprons and runway before discharging the waste into the sea.

At the meeting, held at the Channel Chamber's offices in Ramsgate last Thursday, concerns were raised over de-icers, also known as glycols, which cannot be removed using filtration, entering the bay. Marine biologist Ian Humphreyes, who studied the point at which the water would enter Pegwell Bay for the Environment Agency, said:

"I have no worries about that. I have seen nothing to ring alarm bells in my head. The water from Manston is heavily diluted with fresh water from springs."

Resident Malcolm Kirkaldie is concerned that glycols remove oxygen from water, which could harm animal life. He said:

"It would be nice to see an aeration system, as they have at Gatwick."

The discharge would pass through an interceptor before entering the sea. Manston airport chief executive Charles Buchanan said:

"The interceptor will make sure that we capture anything, like oil, that can be harmful to the environment. It offers another level of protection and complies with legislation."

Mr Buchanan explained the new surface water pipeline will cost Infratil several hundred thousand pounds to install. The Environment Agency's consultation on the plan has been extended until February 28. How does the process work? Interceptor tanks separate oil from water during discharge by working to the principle that oil floats. They are used in schools, car washes and car parks. Waste from Manston airport takes four hours to reach Pegwell.

thisiskent 28th Jan 2011