Climate and environmental leader Bill McKibben was asked after his recent talk in town about climate change, migration, and racism what citizens in the Concord area should prioritize locally. Without skipping a beat he mentioned the expansion of Hanscom Field for private luxury jets.
“It’s the single most ludicrous idea I’ve ever heard,” he said. “They ought to rename it Carbon Dioxide Field. Find a way to knock that down fast.”
by Kati Winchell
Plans for a massive hangar build-out for private luxury jets at Massport’s Hanscom Airport are underway, representing the largest single development in Hanscom’s history. If carried out, these plans will dramatically increase greenhouse gas emissions and undercut town, state, and national climate goals at a time when climate scientists are warning us to dramatically decrease our emissions.
The proposed development would:
- Add nearly 500,000 square feet of hangar space on 49 acres of mostly undisturbed land
- Add 27 private jet hangars for up to 81 additional private jets
- Add more than 36 acres of rainwater-impervious area
- Impact 35 environmental justice populations within a 5-mile radius
- Clearcut mature trees that are the most efficient CO2 carbon sequestration technology
- Harm local wildlife and biodiversity
Private jets have an enormous climate change impact.
Private jets, which typically carry four to five passengers, generate nearly six times more CO2 per flight than a typical passenger car generates per year. They are recognized internationally as the most egregious form of travel per capita for their carbon footprint. For this reason, Amsterdam Schiphol Airport announced on 4/4/23 that it will ban private jets. France is also considering a ban.
The Hanscom project would nullify the climate benefits of approximately 1/3 of all the current solar energy installations in Massachusetts. For this reason alone, it should not move forward here – or at any other airport.
UN Secretary General António Guterres recently declared that, “Our world needs climate action on all fronts: everything, everywhere, all at once.” Expanding infrastructure for super-emitters in the face of this call would demonstrate indefensible disregard for the climate crisis.
In the era of Zoom meetings and an abundance of more efficient travel options, there is no benefit to the Hanscom project that would compensate for the harms to the climate it would cause. We can’t allow convenience or luxury for the privileged few to outweigh the catastrophic effects of climate change on billions of people that, without urgent action on all fronts, will soon become inevitable.
To help stop this expansion for super-emitters, please sign this petition to Governor Healey.
For more information, email: info@saveourheritage.com
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