Climate change activists call off plans to shut down Heathrow
Climate change protestors have called off plans to use drones to close down Heathrow Airport starting this week.
Extinction Rebellion had threatened to disrupt flights to and from the airport from Tuesday to protest against the development of a third runway.
But last week police urged the group to reconsider and warned that anyone involved in disruptive drone activity could face life imprisonment.
In a statement today (Sunday), Extinction Rebellion said it would not be carrying out any actions at Heathrow in June or July this year.
"The Heathrow Airport authorities will therefore not have to pause any summer flights," it said.
"Fear and apprehension have swirled around this action since an internal proposal was leaked to media. The subsequent accusation that Extinction Rebellion was willing to endanger life is a depressing and predictable smear."
The statement added: "What endangers life on this planet is the continued and unfettered release of greenhouse gas emissions that will lead to runaway temperature rise, and the breakdown of life as we know it in the UK and across the world.
"For absolute clarity therefore, Extinction Rebellion has not removed Heathrow Airport from its strategic planning. The Government’s go-ahead for the airport authorities to begin building a third runway could not be more incompatible with the imperative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions globally.
"We don’t want to cause disruption, but we do really need to have an urgent and adult conversation about the emergency."
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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