Aircraft noise in Frankfurt am Main
The construction of an additional runway (“North-West Runway”) at Frankfurt/Main Airport has sparked protests even at the planning stage, particularly from local residents and conservationists, who fear that increased air traffic will lead to greater health and environmental impacts due to noise and pollutant emissions.
The state government subsequently initiated a mediation process, which recommended that the runway be built in conjunction with the introduction of a ban on night-time flights. Nevertheless, night-time flights were later carried out under special permission, and plans were also made for a third terminal. A coalition of citizens’ initiatives protested against this, amongst other things, through so-called ‘Monday demonstrations’, whose participants cited ‘noise pollution’, ‘environmental damage’, ‘sending a message to political parties’ and ‘curbing the economy’ as their main reasons for protesting. The protest movement was studied by the Market Economy Foundation with regard to its age and social structure.
As well as highlighting the conflicts between supporters and opponents of the airport expansion, the case examines mediation as a conflict-resolution tool and questions of the legitimacy of citizens’ initiatives.
