Leeds Bradford Airport’s carbon free claim is flight of fancy in this net zero era – Yorkshire Post Letters

From: Alan D Elsegood, Oxford Road, Guiseley, Leeds.
Leeds Bradford Airport's redevelopment plans continue to attract much criticism over net zero claims.Leeds Bradford Airport's redevelopment plans continue to attract much criticism over net zero claims.
Leeds Bradford Airport's redevelopment plans continue to attract much criticism over net zero claims.

IT is preposterous and specious for Leeds Bradford Airport management to be claiming that the airport will be net zero by 2030, or indeed at any date one can imagine as long as it is still operating as an airport.

I believe it needs to be made clear – clearer than the chief executive, Vincent Hodder, represents the situation – that this claim excludes the two things that generate the highest proportion of carbon emissions, i.e. flights and travel from LBA. Whilst advancing this misleading claim, Mr Hodder fails to separate the airport from the fact it is seeking to increase both passenger numbers and daily flights.

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Passengers have to get to and from the airport, and until we have a railway station there and vastly improved road connectivity, the majority of passengers will still arrive at LBA by car.

Leeds Bradford Airport's redevelopment plans continue to attract much criticism over net zero claims.Leeds Bradford Airport's redevelopment plans continue to attract much criticism over net zero claims.
Leeds Bradford Airport's redevelopment plans continue to attract much criticism over net zero claims.

Even by 2030, and if no new cars powered by petrol or diesel are allowed on sale, this increased traffic will result in increased emissions and congestion.

There is little or no prospect of passenger aircraft being powered by electricity and being able to fly us to Europe, let alone the USA or the Middle East – not even by 2050 according to aviation industry experts.

The biggest all-electric aircraft yet to fly was a nine-seater, but it had no passengers on board and flew for only 30 minutes in May 2020.

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LBA’s current plans include increasing the annual number of passengers from four million (which it has only achieved in one year) to seven million per annum.

Leeds Bradford Airport's redevelopment plans continue to attract much criticism over net zero claims.Leeds Bradford Airport's redevelopment plans continue to attract much criticism over net zero claims.
Leeds Bradford Airport's redevelopment plans continue to attract much criticism over net zero claims.

How can LBA deny its responsibility for the additional traffic to and from the airport, the energy consumption of those passengers whilst on LBA premises, and then say it’s nothing to do with them that noise and carbon emissions will result from any increase in flying?

Not only that, but LBA is trying to push more flights into what are now recognised as “night-time hours”, looking to start flying activity an hour earlier in the morning and half-an-hour later in the evening, seven days a week.

Pity help those who may be trying to sleep in communities those aircraft overfly, such as Menston and Burley-in-Wharfdale.

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When LBA management contrives in this manner to present a public image of caring for the environment and it’s “stakeholders” in the local community, its duplicity is obvious.

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