Bath MP joins holidaymakers at Bristol Airport as the Great British Summer Getaway begins

Airport CEO Dave Lees and his operations team gave Wera a guided tour of the airport, mingling with passengers as they went through the state-of-the-art new screening facility, which simplifies security checks, considerably speeding up the process. Passing through a bustling Duty Free area, and grabbing a delicious Mediterranean Vegetable Medley for lunch at The Cabin, one of Bristol’s eight airside restaurants, Wera then enjoyed the highlight of her tour - stepping out of the departure lounge and on to the tarmac. This section of her visit started with a drive around the apron of the airfield to hear how the teams humanely manage the birdlife in the area to discourage habitation. With bird strikes remaining one of the greatest risks to aviation safety, this is a crucial activity. Wera then got to drive behind a plane, chasing it down the runway - from a safe distance of course - as it took off. “It was amazing - I felt like I was in an action movie!” said a breathless Wera afterwards. A trip up the airport’s control tower, newly refurbished at a cost of £4m - completed Wera’s visit.

Bristol Airport is the primary gateway for the South West of England and South Wales, serving more destinations and passengers than all other airports in these regions combined (117 currently). It aims to continue to increase the breadth of destinations in the future including some destinations beyond Europe into the Middle East and the US.

As the Lib Dems spokesperson for Climate Change, Energy and Transport, Wera was extremely interested to hear about Bristol Airport’s sustainability strategy and decarbonisation goals. An ambitious new sustainability strategy was unveiled in December 2023, with four key goals: to achieve net zero operations by 2030, to support zero emissions flight development, to enhance the local environment, and to support the community, and Wera learned more about these during her visit from CEO Dave Lees, Head of Sustainability Hannah Pollard and Head of Planning and Growth Andrew Goodchild.

They told her about the airport’s commitment to investment in improving access to public transport, encouraging the use of electric vehicles, and enhancing cycling and walking routes to the airport. Currently only 16% of travellers use public transport to get to the airport. It is hoped that a new transport interchange, currently under development and expected to open in 2025, will lead to easier, and therefore increased, public transport access to the terminal and result in far greater numbers using more sustainable ways of getting to the airport.

Additionally, Wera heard of their commitment to ensuring that environmental impact management, including noise, air quality, waste reduction, and biodiversity enhancement, remains a priority.
Bristol Airport is committed to mitigating the environmental impacts of Airport operations on its neighbouring communities and is continuing to make improvements to the management of noise, air quality, waste reduction and to enhance biodiversity. It has ambitious onsite recycling targets, aiming for 65% this year, and owns Lulsgate Wood, 11 acres of adjacent woodland. It has a range of management and enhancement measures in place to support biodiversity, including the protection of horseshoe bats.

The airport inspects air quality continuously using real-time monitors. The results are reported every year in the Annual Monitoring report. And the Airport’s 2024-2029 Noise Action Plan sets out how it will manage the noise arising from airport operations, including measures such as phasing out mobile diesel generators through fixed electric ground power units and mitigation measures during construction works, such as controls on hours of work.

Significantly, the airport is working on the development of the airport’s hydrogen infrastructure with the aim of enabling commercial flights by 2035. As a founding member of the Hydrogen South West consortium and the only airport a part of the Hydrogen In Aviation (HIA) alliance, Bristol Airport is at the forefront of advancing hydrogen flight development. The HIA, featuring companies like Airbus and easyJet, released recommendations in March to accelerate hydrogen flight development.

David Lees, CEO of Bristol Airport, said:

“We are proud to lead the way in sustainable aviation and are committed to achieving our net zero operations target by 2030. Our initiatives, from improving public transport links to pioneering hydrogen technology, are designed to reduce our environmental impact and contribute to a more sustainable future for aviation. It was a pleasure to showcase our efforts to Wera and discuss how we can continue to innovate in this critical area.”

Wera Hobhouse, Liberal Democrat MP for Bath, praised their commitment to sustainability and reducing their carbon footprint:

“As we face the urgent challenge of climate change, it is crucial that the aviation industry takes a leading and responsible role in encouraging greener travel. I am pleased to learn of the initiatives being pursued here at Bristol Airport to prioritise decarbonisation to reach net zero by 2030 and enhance the surrounding environment. I urge all airports across the country to adopt similar sustainable strategies and solutions.

“In the meantime I wish everyone travelling this summer safe, happy and restorative holidays, wherever their destination!”