MP Andy Slaughter to Hand Out Medals at Noise Olympics
HACAN stages race in Ravenscourt Park to highlight impact of Heathrow expansion
Hammersmith MP Andy Slaughter will hand out the medals at the Noise Olympics, being staged by campaign group HACAN on Thursday August 18 at 11am in Ravenscourt Park in Hammersmith.
The Olympics will feature a 100 metre race with eight runners representing the seven European airports which overfly the most people, plus Gatwick.
The top three will mount a podium to be presented with gold, silver and bronze ear-defenders. The race has been timed to coincide with the athletics programme at the Olympic Games in Brazil.
HACAN Chair John Stewart says: " Heathrow is the overwhelming favourite to win. Its planes fly over at least 725,000 people. That is more than three times second place Frankfurt.
"And 60 times more than Gatwick which has just been asked to join the race because it is a candidate for expansion."
He adds: " Heathrow is in a noise league of its own. We expect this to be an important factor when Theresa May decides what airport to expand. With a second runway, Gatwick is expected to impact a total of around 37,000 people."
Jackie Clark, the chair of Stop Heathrow Expansion, which represents the Heathrow villages, says: " We will be sending spectators to the event. The human impact of building a new runway at Heathrow is just too high for it to be acceptable."
August 17, 2016
