Getty ImagesA legal challenge to the government’s decision to approve a second runway at Gatwick Airport has been filed at the High Court, campaigners have said.
In its judicial review claim, Communities against Gatwick Noise Emissions (Cagne) alleges officials unlawfully failed to properly assess the environmental impact of the project.
Cagne told the government in October it planned to challenge its decision to back the expansion.
The Department for Transport said it was unable to comment due to ongoing legal proceedings.
Gatwick said it intended to participate in the proceedings as an interested party but “while legal proceedings are in progress it would not be appropriate to comment any further”.
The £2.2bn privately-financed project includes effectively moving the existing northern runway to bring it into regular use, alongside other developments, such as extending the airport’s terminals.
Gatwick estimates the expansion could result in more than 100,000 extra flights per year by the late 2030s, and says passenger numbers could rise to 80 million.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves said in September the plans would create “thousands of jobs and billions in investment”.
The West Sussex airfield is currently Europe’s busiest single-runway airport with more than 40 million passengers using it every year.
According to its lawyers, Cagne alleges an “unlawful failure to weigh noise harms” when assessing the proposal and an “unlawful requirement concerning wastewater treatment”.
Lawyers claim the environmental assessment submitted as part of the airport’s planning application did not “properly evaluate the significance of inbound flight emissions”.
Campaigners also argue plans wrongly rely on the government’s “Jet Zero” strategy for decarbonising the aviation sector, which “assumes significant improvements” in technology and “is itself unlawful”, lawyers said.
Sally Pavey, chair of Cagne, said the airport expansion would involve “significant increases in noise and more pressure on our sewage system, whilst increasing global warming”.
According to the group’s solicitor, Julia Eriksen, of law firm Leigh Day, campaigners believe government approval came “despite a number of flaws” in the application.
The Campaign to Protect Rural England’s branch in Sussex said it supported Cagne’s judicial review claim.
Gatwick was the latest UK airport to have expansion plans approved after a new terminal and taxiways were given the go-ahead at London Luton Airport in April.
The government has also said it backs a third runway at the country’s biggest airport, Heathrow.