2023-07-14 19:04:00
Residents and a Flemish environmental association gave their support on Friday to the project of the Minister of Mobility Georges Gilkinet to ban night flights at Brussels airport (Zaventem) between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m.
In a press release, the Bond Beter Leefmilieu recalled that a study carried out at the beginning of the year at its request had shown how harmful these night flights were for local residents.
Gilkinet’s plan to end night flights: “The overflight of Brussels is one of the files that have been bogged down for far too long!”
More than 100,000 inhabitants in this region suffer from serious sleep disturbances due to noise pollution from night flights. “Their ban is therefore a logical and absolutely necessary choice to protect the health of local residents”, according to cardiologist Marc Goethals, quoted in the press release.
The association adds that other European airports where night flights are drastically reduced are still operational and economically viable. Jasper Wouters of Bond Beter Leefmilieu therefore does not expect a negative effect for Belgium. According to him, the ban on night flights would essentially affect DHL’s “just in time” business model.
“If DHL can no longer operate night flights, this will not necessarily result in a less attractive business model. The time of delivery of parcels will simply be shifted during the day. In return, the hundreds of thousands of local residents will find their sleep, which will translate into better results at school and at work, and an overall saving of €1 billion in healthcare costs.”
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