Written Answers - Air Services.
Seán Ryan
Question:
162
Mr. S. Ryan
asked the
Minister for Public Enterprise
the position in relation to the proposed second parallel at Dublin Airport in view of the opposition by the residents in Portmarnock, County Dublin, to the proposal; if she will arrange for a study to be carried out to identify an alternative suitable site, including Gormanstown aerodrome, for a second international airport in the region; and if she will direct that all preparatory work in the current proposal at Dublin Airport cease.
[14024/01]
Proposals concerning the development of the three State airports, including Dublin Airport, are in the first instance a matter for Aer Rianta, which has statutory responsibility to manage, operate and develop the airports and to provide such facilities and services as it considers necessary for aircraft and passengers.
Dublin Airport is the country's main airport serving the needs not just of the travelling public in the capital city and the surrounding counties, but of the country's tourism, business and freight sectors generally. Notwithstanding the greatly welcome increase in traffic at Shannon and Cork airports and, to a lesser extent, the regional airports, Dublin airport will remain crucial to the national economy. Apart from being the country's main access point by air, Dublin Airport has been, and still is, highly significant in terms of the local economy of the north side of Dublin and provides substantial and valuable employment for the people of the surrounding areas, both directly and indirectly through the multitude of service industries that have evolved over time in and around the facility. This is also true of the other two State airports at Shannon and Cork.
Aer Rianta is currently engaged in a review of its long-term master plan for Dublin Airport. That review is being carried out in consultation with the stakeholders, including airlines and other business customers and local residents. The plan will determine the key requirements in terms of future development of infrastructural facilities to ensure that the airport has sufficient capacity to meet future demand. In this regard, Dublin Airport has considerable scope and capacity to expand further to cater for future growth in air traffic.
As regards the suggestion for a study to identify an alternative site for a second airport to serve the Dublin region, I would remind the Deputy that this issue was addressed in the consultants' report I commissioned from Warburg Dillon Read into the future strategy for Aer Rianta. The consultants confirmed that Dublin does not need a second airport, given Dublin Airport's capacity to grow for the foreseeable future.
While the process of stakeholder consultation is not yet complete, I understand that it is Aer Rianta's strong view that the proposed second runway must continue to form an integral part of the long-term master plan for Dublin Airport. Because of passenger growth projections, Aer Rianta estimates that this runway will need to be in place before the end of the current decade.
The proposal to provide the second parallel runway is far from new. Aer Rianta began acquiring the necessary lands involved in the late 1960s and, as far back as 1972, the then county council included the runway in the county development plan.
The proposal to proceed with the runway project will, of course, be subject to planning permission being obtained. The planning process will provide the appropriate forum for all interested parties, including local residents, to have their views and any concerns heard by the planning authorities.
I understand that Aer Rianta has appointed an environmental impact consultant and work has begun on assessing the environmental implications of the proposed new runway.
