I welcome the Minister and I thank the Cathaoirleach for selecting this matter for discussion on the Adjournment.
The Minister is accustomed to visiting this House to debate matters I have raised on the Adjournment in relation to transport in north Dublin. It is said that the role of a Minister is important in the life of the country so I am sure she is gratified to realise she is such an important figure in north County Dublin, not that she needed reminding.
The motion requests the Minister to outline the options that were considered by Aer Rianta and the Department prior to the decision to proceed with the new east-west runway at Dublin Airport, which will have major negative consequences not only for the surrounding area but particularly for the communities resident there. I am not opposed to development. In fact, I am much in favour of it but implicit in the use of the word "development" should be quality, balance and propriety for the environment in which the development is to take place. In that regard, the proposed development at Dublin Airport is open to question. Balance does not simply mean balance in the context of the development of the area we are discussing but should also apply in the context of potential spin off development in other areas where existing development should be controlled to a greater degree.
The area of north County Dublin or Fingal has a long tradition of receiving visitors from overseas; it does not date from when the airport was built. It received the Danes in 795 who were defeated in Clontarf in 1014. It is interesting that the area of Fingal derives its title from the old Gaelic words Fionn Gall, which means a fair stranger. That indicates the long history of the area in welcoming strangers. Now it welcomes them not by sea, as was the case for several hundred years, but by air. They currently number 14 million per annum.
Dublin Airport is the single dominant feature in north County Dublin. The airport provides more than 20,000 jobs. The current traffic of 14 million passengers is projected to increase to 20 million over the next five years. One cringes to think of that figure but we are told that the campus is capable of dealing with 40 million passengers per annum, subject to the necessary buildings and structures being put in place. That is treble the existing level.
Aer Rianta's current plan is to build a second runway running parallel to the east-west runway. That runway caters for 90% of traffic at the airport at present, which represents 44 aircraft movements per hour from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. each day of the year, with the exception of Christmas Day. Local communities, particularly those of Portmarnock and St. Margaret's, are beginning to ask questions about the nature of the development taking place at Collinstown, as it is known, and whether it should proceed solely at the behest of the market or whether the views of those living locally, who have admittedly benefited hugely from the presence of such a fine industrial complex, should be taken into consideration.
The views of the residents, as distinct from those directly or indirectly employed at Dublin Airport, should be taken on board. Existing development at the airport has many hidden side effects. In addition to noise pollution, particularly over the Portmarnock area, there is the serious problem of flooding. Much of it is due to the absence of natural soakage because of the extensive tarmac development at the airport for air traffic and the phenomenal use of many acres of ground for car parking because of the lack of appropriate transport infrastructure for access to the facility.
In the last census, the community of Portmarnock had the highest rate of family occupancy of any community in the country at 89%. A significant number of people in the community work at Dublin Airport and, as such, are more conscious than most of the necessity for balance in the development of the airport. It has now reached the stage where they are beginning to say stop.
The projected increase in passenger traffic through the airport from 14 million to 40 million is a horrific thought. Even the increase from 14 million to 20 million passengers over the next five years is sobering, particularly given the absence of real change in access infrastructure especially with regard to light rail. The plans are there and work is on schedule. I am aware things are going well in that regard but the bottom line is that passenger numbers will reach 20 million before that vital element of infrastructure will be in place.
The residents' principal difficulty is with the noise levels at the airport and the fact that the construction of this alternative runway, as proposed, in direct parallel with the main east-west runway, will simply over a short period serve to facilitate the doubling of the difficulties, particularly the noise pollution. This noise pollution is causing severe difficulties in the Portmarnock area, not only early in the morning and late at night but also throughout the day.
The question which arises and which needs to be looked at is the national strategy for the development of our aviation facilities. It is an issue which I have raised in the House previously in the context of the outstanding opportunity presented by the proposed sale of Gormanston Aerodrome. That facility is well served by existing infrastructure and it would take relatively little to develop it as a major facility.
The bottom line is there is a real need for a second airport servicing Dublin. It need not be within immediate access of the city, when one considers that Beauvais serves Paris and Charleroi serves Brussels. Without mentioning it by name, a certain airline has made huge profits on the demand for low cost travel, which need not be from the centre of one city to the centre of another as had been the case in the past. Recently I read of a suggestion for the possible development of an airport facility at Portlaoise, and I see nothing wrong with that. The point I want to make is that, like the vast majority of people in Ireland, I am in favour of development but we must get a sense of balance and perspective. Aer Lingus, Aer Rianta, Ryanair and all the companies working at Dublin Airport have been good for Fingal but the time has come to ask if further development per se is good for Fingal.
I look forward to hearing the Minister's comments. I thank her again for coming to the House to respond to this motion regarding these infrastructural difficulties we are experiencing in north County Dublin. Unfortunately these difficulties are not going away and it does not look as if they will.
