Opposition to the proposed Tarras airport is ramping up in the wake of an aeronautical assessment which indicated the airport could serve short-haul international flights. 

Lobby group Stop Central Otago Airport (SCOA) was formed in July and it already has 1,000 members, and a second group, Sustainable Tarras, has launched a petition to parliament to prevent the development of an airport. 

SCOA spokesperson Zella Downing said the group had strong support but it was taking its time working through Christchurch Airport’s preliminary assessment and gauging local sentiment.

“We first want to understand the level of opposition, and then we'll see who steps forward,” Zella said. “We're not in a rush, but we will build opposition to this.”

Meanwhile, Sustainable Tarras’ petition has drawn a firm line in the sand, asking that the airport not go ahead.

The petition says Sustainable Tarras believes taxpayers are funding the development of an “unnecessary new international airport” in Tarras.

The group questioned the benefits of a return to pre-Covid-19 tourism levels, saying it would negatively impact the community and landscape.

Zella said SCOA was not affiliated with Sustainable Tarras but the groups kept in touch and held similar goals.

She said SCOA encouraged residents to read the petition and sign it if they agree. 

The group has also released the results of a survey of Tarras residents which shows 83 per cent of respondents were ‘strongly against’ the proposed airport.

In July last year Christchurch Airport revealed it had spent $45M to develop a wide body jet capable airport on 750ha of land in Tarras (bordered by State Highways 8, 8A, and Maori Point Road).

The aeronautical assessment, released in September, said the airport site could support an airfield with a single runway of at least 2.2 kilometres and possibly up to three kilometres.

It is part of Christchurch’s Airport’s ‘planning and validation’ phase for Tarras, which is expected to run until 2023.

PHOTO: Wānaka App