ZERO – Association for a Sustainable Terrestrial System launched on Friday, September 4th, a monitoring platform for night flights at Humberto Delgado Airport, in Lisbon. The association revealed that the Portuguese capital has been without the right to silence for 536 days after the Government promised nights without flights. The platform, available at https://aerovoos.zero.ong/, uses data from Flightradar24.com to allow citizens to daily monitor how many aircraft arrive or depart from Lisbon during the night.
According to ZERO, the legal limit of 91 movements between midnight and 06h00 was only met in two weeks, during an analysis of 35 weeks. In the week of August 17 to 23, there were 187 movements, 96 more than the 91 permitted, making it the worst week in the period analyzed. On the four worst days recorded – March 30, May 10, March 29 and August 24 – there were, respectively, 48, 46, 43 and 43 movements, when the daily legal limit is only 26.
Data collected since the beginning of the year revealed 4,647 aircraft movements between 00h00 and 06h00, of which 1,165 were between 01h00 and 05h00, precisely the period in which the Government announced a flight ban would be established. The association emphasized that in 33 of the 35 weeks analyzed, the weekly maximum of 91 movements was exceeded and that 1,465 air movements above the established quantitative limits were recorded. The legislation allows for exceptions, which is why ZERO called on ANAC to clarify which movements are covered by legal exceptions.
ZERO warned that exposure to nighttime aircraft noise is associated by scientific evidence with sleep disturbance and other adverse health effects. WHO recommended that during the night, noise levels be below 40 dB(A), values far below the 55 dB(A) permitted by national legislation. The Noise Action Plan 2024–2029 provides only seven million euros for mitigation measures, plus 10 million euros for soundproofing, values considered manifestly insufficient by the association. ZERO advocates for reducing impacts, compliance with the flight ban between 01h00 and 05h00, and speed in the construction of the new airport to definitively close the Portela facility.
