GCC has been campaigning to keep the day and night-time skies quiet over Gungahlin.

The Federal Minister for Transport Anthony Albanese has given the Canberra International Airport (CIA) a big "F" for fail on their ambitious Master Plan.

Getting particular attention from the Minister was the Airport's plans to turn it into a 24/7 freight hub, with seemingly little regard for the noise impacts on Canberra residents.

Summing up the situation beautifully was the Canberra Times cartoonist:

Not content to wait until after the ACT election on 18 October, the ACT Greens are already active in pursuing a key campaign issue for the Gungahlin Community Council - a curfew for the Canberra Airport.

Greens leader Bob Brown has tabled a motion in the Federal Government Senate, to be debated on October 13, calling for the 11pm-6am curfew for Canberra, citing how well they worked in Sydney, Coolangatta, Essendon and Adelaide.

When GCC reps met a few weeks ago with Greens candidates Shane Rattenbury and Meredith Hunter, we pointed out that the airport curfew was a key concern, even though aircraft noise is not a significant issue for Gungahlin - yet.

We explained that it is far easier to get this sort of thing in place early in the piece, rather than years later, when various businesses have invested heavily in infrastructure and business development - points we argued previously in our submission to the Canberra Airport Master Plan review.

To their credit the ACT Greens have got the issue of a curfew for the Canberra Airport onto the national agenda. They have had Senator Bob Brown put the issue in the Senate.

Unfortunately, as reported in the Canberra Times, the Federal Government's Senator Stephen Conroy has attempted to put dampers on the idea, saying that a curfew is not needed.

But Senator Conroy is getting poor advice. The issue is not that Canberra has sufficient aircraft traffic and noise to need a curfew now. The issue is that it is a whole lot easier to put a curfew in place now when traffic levels and (more importantly) investment levels are at low levels, then further down the track when these issues are at bed levels.

We have a new federal government, but it seems some things just don't change...

The Canberra Times has reported that the Federal Government has approved yet another office development at the airport - this time at "Majura Park - that is, next to Brand Depot.

This time, it's another 1000 jobs going to the airport precinct - jobs that otherwise could have been located in Gungahlin, up to 2000 more car movements on already choked roads.

Gungahlin Community Council has united with other community organisations along the length of Canberra to oppose aspects of the Canberra Airport's draft Master Plan 2008, which is open for public comment until the end of February.

The new group is called Curfew for Canberra. The objectives of the association are to:

• secure a night time curfew at Canberra Airport
• oppose Canberra Airport becoming a 24-hour national & international freight hub
• oppose Canberra Airport becoming the second Sydney Airport
• oppose the construction of a parallel main runway
• oppose light aircraft engaged in training activities from transiting or over flying residential areas
• pursue appropriate amendments to the Canberra Noise Abatement Area
• inform the Canberra, Queanbeyan and surrounding communities about the consequences of aviation expansion that impact on residents' quality of life, and
• represent the concerns of residents and members to government and authorities.

CANBERRA AIRPORT EXPANSION:  A PRICE TOO HIGH?
A public meeting hosted by ACT Greens MLA, Deb Foskey 

When:  Thursday, February 7, 2008, 6.00pm for 6.30 pm until 8.30pm
Where:  Reception Room, ACT Legislative Assembly, Civic Square

Speakers     

• Mr Mick Gentleman MLA, for the ACT Government
• Mr Frank Pangallo MBE, Mayor Of Queanbeyan
• Mr Andrew McIntosh, author of The Australia Institute’s recent research paper, ‘Aviation and Greenhouse Gas Emissions in the ACT’
• Other speakers to be confirmed

When:  Thursday, February 7, 2008, 6.00pm for 6.30 pm until 8.30pm
Where:  Reception Room, ACT Legislative Assembly, Civic Square

Background
Canberra International Airport is planning massive expansion under its latest draft Master Plan. It wants to become Sydney’s second airport, including a 24-hour airfreight hub.  Unlike Sydney, Canberra does not have a night time curfew. There will be bigger planes with much greater frequency – up to 1 plane movement every 2 minutes.  There are significant social & environmental costs to the Canberra & Queanbeyan communities. The Airport draft Master Plan is open for public comment until 27/2/2008.

As the Canberra Airport readies its revised Master Plan, the subject of noise impacts from the planned expansion are sure to be on many peoples’ agendas. So too the traffic impacts of the airport’s unrelated commercial expansion.

This comprehensive article from the Canberra Times explores the key issues well. As a large article, it is a large file though – 2.5MB – so be warned if you are on dial-up.

The meeting seemed fairly heavily weighted towards industry and airport people, with community representatives maybe a third of those there, and just seven of the invitees versus 32 airport industry and government people...