Sunderland Airshow axed due to 'global climate emergency' after three yers of cancellations due to Covid
29 October 2022, 14:39
Sunderland Airshow has been cancelled to help the city reach its net zero ambitions.
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Europe's biggest free airshow had been cancelled for the past three years because of concerns about Covid.
But now Sunderland City Council has announced it has no plans for the spectacle to return.
The council's Labour leader Graeme Miller said the environment was one of the "top concerns" for Sunderland residents, making it "harder to justify" carbon-heavy events.
"Our residents have told us that they want to see new and different events, and ones that they themselves can get involved in," Cllr Miller told the Northern Echo.
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"No-one who has witnessed the extreme weather events of recent years, from wildfires and droughts across Europe to the storms and heatwaves we’ve experienced here this last year, can be in any doubt about the devastating impact that climate change is having on our planet.
"Residents have identified the environment as one of their top concerns and both the council and the city have committed to tackling the global climate emergency by reducing carbon emissions.
"This makes it all the harder to justify events such as the airshow, which generate large amounts of carbon, going ahead in the future."
The announcement has been met with disappointment from local residents.
David Lee told the Northern Echo the show "put Sunderland on the map".
"It's sad to see it go," he said.
Another resident took to Twitter to urge organisers to change the show instead of scrap it.
"Sunderland airshow should not be cancelled," she said.
"Rather than cancel it, we should look for a new home to run it, a local airfield, so the aircraft can land, and not fly as far.
"The show needs to evolve, but not be [cancelled]."
However others have welcomed the move, with local resident Irene telling the Echo there would eventually be protests if the show went ahead and it was the "right thing" to do to stop it.
"I used to come down and it was really good but I think it’s the right thing to do," she said.
"The kids are really aware [of climate change] and it'll only start protests if it keeps going."
