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Information Meetings on Stansted Expansion Plans

More than 40 community presentations have been lined up for the coming months by Stop Stansted Expansion (SSE) to help people get to grips with proposals for a second runway at Stansted and to explain how to lodge objections.

SSE has agreed to speak at parish and town council meetings across Essex, Hertfordshire and Suffolk as part of its drive to alert local communities to the threat posed by BAA's plans, with more dates being added all the time.

Development on the scale being proposed by BAA would have far-reaching effects across the region both during the four year construction phase - which would make Stansted the biggest building site in Europe - and when fully operational.

Each meeting will feature a speaker from the SSE team, including Chairman Peter Sanders and other members of SSE's executive committee. They will draw on the airport operator’s recently submitted planning application to explain how, if it were approved, Stansted could become bigger than Heathrow today in terms of flights and passengers, plus an enormous landgrab that would entail destruction of homes, heritage, countryside and ancient woodland.

Advice will be given to those wanting to lodge their views on the plans before the cut off date of 26 June set by local planning authority, Uttlesford District Council. Thereafter, the application is expected to be the subject of a ‘call in’ for public inquiry next year and different rules for expressing views will apply.

Commenting on the programme, SSE Campaign Director Carol Barbone said:

“Yet again we’re faced with a planning application from BAA which tries to pretend that the development of Stansted would have virtually no impact on the environment or on people’s quality of life. Our presentations will help reveal the true picture.”

The SSE website contains the full list of meetings that have been planned and will be kept updated to reflect additional events as they are organized - see ‘Coming Events’ at: http://www.stopstanstedexpansion.com/events.html. Further information can also be obtained by calling the campaign office on 01279 870558 or emailing info@stopstanstedexpansion.com.

Information on accessing the planning application, with advice on how to respond, is also available on the SSE website (see link to ‘Second Runway Application – Quick Links’ www.stopstanstedexpansion.com/second_runway.html).


LIST OF MEETINGS

The meetings at which SSE will speak are largely parish and town council meetings open to the public. Details of the programme as at 8 April 2008 appear below. See website for more detail including timings and venues at: http://www.stopstanstedexpansion.com/events.html

10 April Braughing Parish Council Annual Meeting
10 April Weston Parish Council
14 April Radwinter Parish Council
16 April Birchanger Parish Council
17 April Saffron Walden Town Council - Public Meeting on Airspace Proposals
23 April Rushden and Wallington Parish Council
28 April Helions Bumpstead Parish Council
1 May Henham with Elsenham Parish Councils
8 May Hormead Parish Council
10 May Ashen Parish Council (near Sudbury)
12 May Epping Upland Parish Council
12 May High Roding Parish Council Annual Assembly
12 May Hadstock Parish Council
13 May Great Canfield Parish Council
14 May Hatfield Heath Annual Parish Meeting
15 May Redbourn Parish Council
19 May Little Bardfield Parish Council
20 May Chrishall Parish Council
21 May Sible Hedingham Public Meeting for c10 neighbouring parishes
21 May Ickleton Parish Council
22 May Chantry Community Association
2 June Brickendon Parish Council
4 June St Paul's Walden Parish Council
4 June Saffron Walden Town Council
9 June Sawbridgeworth Town Council
10 June Woolmer Green Parish Council
12 June Nazeing Parish Council
16 June Hertford Town Council
18 June Broomfield Parish Council
25 June Sheering Parish Council
26 June Great Easton (with Broxted) Parish Council
3 July Widdington Parish Council
7 July Stapleford Abbots Parish Council
8 July Willingale Parish Council
17 July Good Easter Parish Council
17 July Stanstead Abbotts Parish Council
31 July Theydon Bois Parish Council
8 September Barnston Parish Council

The Wilderness Foundation UK encourages free debate on all aspects of development which have a potential detrimental effect on both our local and global environment. The information in this article has been supplied to us by the Stop Stansted Expansion group and is presented here to you for your own evaluation. Views and comments expressed are not necessarily those of WFUK.