4th November 2009
The first annual report to parliament by the Committee on Climate Change (CCC), was published last month, albeit in “limited numbers, using waterless printing, 100 per cent renewable energy and vegetable oil based inks on paper with 100 per cent recycled content, FSC, EMAS and ISO 14001 certified”.
The report opened by emphasising the need for a step change, with a reminder of policies required to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases from electricity generation through to transport.
In a September letter to the transport minister, the CCC had warned that the cost of air travel must rise to deter people from flying and to compensate developing countries for damage to the environment. Its detailed report on how the UK can meet targets to reduce aviation emissions by 2050, is due to be published on 8 December.
Yet the government’s “aviation policy”, if such a thing exists, seems at variance with the CCC. There seems to be a tacit acceptance by politicians of the continual expansion of the aviation industry, with the oft-repeated rhetoric that Heathrow must maintain its iconic world status as a hub airport. The other economic argument espoused is that Heathrow, already one of London’s largest employers, will create an additional 117,000 indirect jobs and thousands more construction jobs.
In the face of opposition from the Conservative party for any expansion at Heathrow, Gatwick or Stansted, it appears that British Airways has at least temporarily dropped ideas of a planning application before the general election. Yet, barely had anti-aviation groups (and tomato growers) breathed a sigh of relief, when London’s Mayor, Boris Johnson, had commissioned and published a feasibility report (20 October) identifying “no overwhelming constraints” for a visionary “Bo Jo” international airport in the Thames Estuary.
The plans for an estuary airport have already sparked concerns about adverse impacts to the flow of the Thames, wildlife and birds, loss of marine habitats, erosion and flooding. There is no mention of tomatoes or Capital Growth (the Mayor’s lottery funded sustainable food growing project).
Tomatoes should, however, play a fundamental part in any discussion about airports. Phytophthora infestans, a fungal infection, or tomato blight, is dispersed by wind and water splash. It thrives in warm, wet conditions and tomatoes grown in open conditions are susceptible. Once infected, a whole crop can be wiped out and even if picked immediately, the tomatoes still rot. The virus also affects potatoes.
Politicians please note; more planes means climate change, more humid conditions and more rain, which means less tomatoes.