𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Heathrow Airport’s expansion must not go ahead unless the aviation industry is forced to clean up its climate emissions, the government’s green advisers have warned. The cost of international flights might have to increase by hundreds of pounds by 2050 to pay for measures that will help the airline sector cut its carbon pollution to zero overall, the Climate Change Committee (CCC) said.

Chancellor John Healey last week confirmed the Government had “given the go-ahead” to the proposal to build a third runway at Heathrow Airport, which will cost an estimated £33 billion. This includes £1.5 billion to move the M25 and increase the site’s capacity to 756,000 flights and 150 million passengers.

But Prime Minister Andy Burnham has previously expressed concerns over the expansion, and it has long been opposed by climate experts and Mayor of London Lord Sadiq Khan.

The UK has a legal target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions overall to net zero by 2050, which means cutting pollution as near to zero as possible.

Nigel Topping, the CCC’s chairman, said aviation emissions will dwarf all other parts of the economy by 2050 and Heathrow’s expansion alone would produce more emissions than any other sector.

Mr Topping added: “Every tonne of greenhouse gas emissions contributes to climate change and its impacts, of which we’ve seen stark evidence with the extreme weather this summer.

“Expansion cannot mean more climate pollution.”

“Ultimately, the polluter pays principle must apply. If aviation is to grow, it must take responsibility for the emissions it creates.

“Expansion can only be compatible with the UK’s climate commitments if the sector is required to manage and pay for the full cost of reaching net zero.”

The committee estimated that policies to cut aviation emissions to net zero would add as much as £150 to a return flight to Alicante, Spain, by 2050, and £400 to a return flight to New York but said action now could ensure the costs are phased in slowly to avoid sudden jumps in price.

Aviation policies to cut emissions include more efficient aircraft and airspace management, sustainable aviation fuels, paying for projects that remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and reducing growth in demand for flights.

The airline industry said airlines were already investing billions in new aircraft, sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and airspace upgrades.

Tim Alderslade, chief executive of industry body Airlines UK, said: “The answer is affordable SAF, already cutting emissions since the mandate began, airspace reform by 2035 for more direct routes and scaled-up carbon removals.

“Both SAF and greenhouse gas removals are proven technically viable, as the CCC itself admits.

“We should focus on delivering them, not pricing ordinary people out of the joys of travel.”

A Department for Transport spokesman said: “Any expansion proposal would need to align with our net-zero targets.

“We’re investing £219 million in sustainable aviation fuel production and a further £43 million in cleaner technologies to support greener aviation, while expansion could deliver around £40 billion to the economy and support up to 60,000 local jobs.

“We will carefully consider CCC’s advice along with all responses received to the Heathrow expansion consultation.”