Local residents and a Flemish environmental association gave their support on Friday to a plan by Mobility Minister Georges Gilkinet to ban flights at Brussels Airport (Zaventem) between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m.
In a press release, Bond Beter Leefmilieu pointed out that a study carried out early this year at its request had shown the extent to which night flights were harmful to people living in the vicinity of the airport.
More than 100,000 area residents suffer from serious sleep disorders due to noise pollution from night flights. “Banning them is therefore a logical and absolutely necessary choice to protect the health of local residents,” cardiologist Marc Goethals is quoted as saying in the press release.
The association adds that other European airports where night flights are considerably reduced are still operational and economically viable.
Jasper Wouters, of Bond Beter Leefmilieu, does not expect the ban to have a negative effect on Belgium. In his view, it would mainly 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,” Wouters said.
“Parcel delivery times will simply be shifted into the day. In return, the hundreds of thousands of local residents will get their sleep back, leading to better results at school and work, and an overall saving of €1 billion in health costs,” he argued.
