Expert Witness Reports

Defence witness statements submitted to the court for the second trial.

Key points relevant to the defence are included below each witness with paragraph numbers where relevant.

Dr Robin Stott – Retired physician and co-chair of the Climate and Health Council. The public health impacts of climate change.

• WHO estimated that in the year 2000 climate change caused 150,000 deaths. This is almost certainly an under-estimate and the annual figure will now be considerably higher than in 2000 (6, 12)
• Disease areas implicated include malnutrition, diarrhoea, deaths due to foods and temperature related cardiovascular deaths (9)
• Wider health risks include access to food and water, changing geographic spread of infectious diseases, and more extreme weather events. Ecosystem collapse through species loss will cause widespread mortality, and mass migration is likely to be a future driver of conflict (12, 15)

Professor Kevin Anderson – Previously head of Tyndall Centre for climate change research. Now director of energy and climate change research at the Tyndall Centre Emissions budgets and limiting temperature rise. Aviation and the consequences of failing to take action.

• The importance of cumulative emissions means that we cannot counteract excessive emissions in the present with more severe cuts in the future.
• International and UK efforts on climate change have thus far been insufficient to limit temperature rise to 2ºC. The UK’s Climate Change Committee (CCC) are using carbon budgets which give a 56% to 63% chance of exceeding  2ºC, which is at odds with stated government policy.
• 2ºC is the threshold between dangerous and extremely dangerous climate change. Possible consequences if it is breached include extreme disruption to agriculture, mass population displacement and exceeding tipping points.
• Without quick action to reduce global emissions we are likely to face a choice between significant economic and political upheaval from the costs of climate change impacts, or from the changes necessary to make sufficient cuts in the future.
• Having a good chance of keeping temperature rise below 2ºC will require aviations emissions being completely eliminated by 2030. There is no realistic chance of this being achieved through technological innovations in that timescale.
• Emissions as a whole from Manchester airport are a little under 3 million tonnes of CO2 every year. Translating global limits to the personal, the UK should be looking to reduce emissions to around 1 tonne per person by 2030.

Dr Geoff Meaden - Principle Lecturer at the department of Geographical and Life Sciences at the University of Canterbury, now retired. Overview of climate change impacts, and example of flooding threat to the Greater Manchester area.

• Climate change impacts including increased heat waves, forest fires, drought and flooding (11)
• Global temperature rise could set off ‘tipping points’ which will trigger further warming processes (12)
• Vulnerability of the Manchester area to flooding, including the airport site itself. Costs of flood defence (17-28 esp. 18, 26, 27)

John McDonnell MP - Local MP for Hayes and Harlington, including the area under threat from Heathrow’s 3rd Runway. National aviation policy and the experience of Heathrow

• The history of Heathrow expansion shows that the aviation industry has a history of getting its way against democratic opposition, frequently circumventing planning restrictions and breaking previous promises to limit expansion.
• There is a revolving door between the aviation industry and government, and the industry holds significant influence over policy-makers
• Citizens and the environment are in effect being ignored in favour of the aviation industry

Councillor Martin Eakins – Manchester City Councillor for Northenden Ward, in the same district as the airport. Local context, campaign against expansion plans and the intransigence of the council.

• Manchester City Council owns a 55% stake in the airport & sets the strategic aims for the airport (5, 7)
• Details of the campaign to oppose the current airport expansion plans (8-19)
• When Cllr. Eakins challenged Richard Leese (Leader of Manchester City Council) on the impacts of expansion (including climate change), he was mocked rather than seriously engaged with (19-23)

Peter Johnson – Resident of Hasty Lane whose home is scheduled to be demolished when Manchester Airport expands the World Freight Centre. Campaign against the expansion and ownership of the airport.

• Manchester City Council act as de facto owners of the airport. Richard Leese chairs the committee which makes policy for the airport (4)
• Also details of campaign to oppose current expansion plans (6-13)
• Costs for judicial review were prohibitively high (14-15)