Press Release

Issued by London Ashford Airport Ltd.

January 26, 2007

London Ashford Airport (Lydd) in Kent could introduce a penalty system for airline operators to minimise aircraft noise during take-off and landing – just one of a series of measures that will be put in place to help safeguard the environment as the airport continues to forge ahead with development.

Under the scheme, pilots would be fined for using 'excessive thrust' when coming into or departing from Lydd. Money raised from the fines would be ploughed into a special fund set up to benefit the local community. LAA will also fund a study into wintering and breeding birds as part of a wider scheme to enhance bird conservation.

Details of these and other measures are outlined in the airport's comprehensive Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). The EIA, which took more than two years to complete, followed extensive consultations with key stakeholders.  The report reveals that the airport will:

·        Produce an auditable waste management strategy to identify the most environmentally-friendly way to manage, collect and dispose of airport waste, with the focus on reducing, re-using and recycling. Waste prevention and minimisation programmes will also be targeted at airlines to cut down on waste generated by passengers.

·        Seek to promote a conservation monitoring programme, linked to a biodiversity management plan, to ensure that airport development doesn't result in any reduction in biodiversity.

·        Work closely with the Civil Aviation Authority, the RSPB and Natural England to enhance bird conservation. As part of this, the airport will fund a research study to further assess the potential for air traffic to disturb wintering and breeding birds in the area.

·        Develop a travel plan to encourage the use of 'sustainable modes of transport' for both passengers and staff and reduce the reliance on private cars. LAA will also contribute to enhancing the existing bus services between Lydd and Ashford International Station so that they go via the airport.

·        Work with regulatory authorities to develop a roundabout at Hammonds Corner, vastly improving traffic flow to the benefit of local residents.

·        Develop an air quality management strategy and a long-term air quality monitoring study.

·        Develop a noise management plan in consultation with the local authority – including, for example, a penalty system to fine airline operators using excessive thrust when taking off from or landing at LAA.

LAA's managing director Zaher Deir said: "The development of London Ashford Airport (Lydd) will bring widespread social and economic benefits, not just to Romney Marsh and Shepway but to Kent as a whole – a fact that has been recognised in the Kent and Medway Structure Plan.

"At the same time, LAA realises it has a duty to ensure that measures are in place to avoid, minimise or offset any potentially significant effects the project might have on the environment and local community. For that reason we continue to do everything we can to make sure any development is done in an environmentally sensitive manner."

London Ashford Airport (Lydd) has submitted two planning applications to Shepway Council. One is for a new terminal building, capable of handling up to 500,000 passengers a year; the other is for a 294-metre runway extension together with an additional 150-metre starter extension.