Albion Park Rail Bypass State Significant Infrastructure Application Report

Roads and Maritime Services Albion Park Rail bypass State significant infrastructure application report December 2014 RMS 14.576 ISBN 978-1-925217-17-9 Executive summary Introduction and need Roads and Maritime Services is planning for a 9.8 kilometre extension of the M1 Princes Motorway between Yallah and Oaks Flats to bypass Albion Park Rail (the project). The motorway would complete the ‘missing link’ for a high standard road between Sydney and Bomaderry. It would provide easy access to Dapto, Albion Park and Oak Flats, have two lanes in each direction with median separation and have capacity for additional lanes. It is expected to be signposted at 100 kilometres per hour. The project would also require ancillary facilities during construction, such as compounds, stockpile sites, temporary accesses, and sedimentation basins. Roads and Maritime’s strategy is to provide a minimum four lane divided highway between Sydney and Jervis Bay Road, just south of Nowra. In line with this, the NSW Government has committed to a series of upgrades on the Princes Highway. Each of the remaining sections of highway to be upgraded to four lanes is under construction, or in planning, making the road standard of the section between Yallah and Oak Flats inconsistent with the Princes Motorway to the north and the Princes Highway to the south. The Princes Motorway and Princes Highway between southern Sydney and Bomaderry have free flowing traffic conditions with the only remaining traffic lights at Albion Park Rail. Roads and Maritime considers that the project is needed to improve road safety and efficiency of the road network. Planning and assessment process The project is permissible without consent by virtue of clause 94 of State Environmental Planning Policy (Infrastructure) 2007 (ISEPP), meaning that the project is an activity within the meaning of Part 5 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (EP&A Act) and Roads and Maritime is the determining authority. Clause 1 of Schedule 3 of the State Environmental Planning Policy (State and Regional Development) 2011 specifies infrastructure or other development that would be an activity for which the proponent is also the determining authority and would, in the opinion of the proponent, require an environmental impact statement to be obtained under Part 5 of the EP&A Act. Roads and Maritime has formed the opinion that the project is likely to significantly affect the environment and would require an environmental impact statement to be obtained and consequently the project is State significant infrastructure under Part 5.1. The purpose of this application report is to assist the formulation of environmental assessment requirements by the Secretary under section 115Y of the EP&A Act. Proposed scope of the environmental impact statement The purpose of this application report is to comply with section 115X of the EP&A Act and to assist the formulation of environmental assessment requirements by the Secretary under section 115Y of the EP&A Act, which would inform the preparation of the environmental impact statement. Albion Park Rail bypass ii State significant infrastructure application report Roads and Maritime Services This report: Describes the project Considers the potential environmental issues for the project Identifies key environmental issues for the project, including: - Traffic and transport - Hydrology and flooding - Ecology - Aboriginal heritage - Non-Aboriginal heritage - Noise and vibration - Socio-economic - Landscape and visual amenity - Land use Outlines other non-key environmental issues, including: - Soils, contamination and water quality - Air quality - Greenhouse gases and climate change - Resources and waste management. This application report and the Secretary’s environmental assessment requirements will inform the preparation of an environmental impact statement for the project. Albion Park Rail bypass iii State significant infrastructure application report Roads and Maritime Services Contents 1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Overview of the project ...................................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Statutory process .................................................................................................................................................... 4 1.3 Purpose of this report .......................................................................................................................................... 6 2 Background ...................................................................................................................................... 7 2.1 Project need ................................................................................................................................................................ 7 2.2 Consistency with strategic planning .......................................................................................................8 2.3 Project objectives ................................................................................................................................................... 9 2.4 Selection of the preferred route .................................................................................................................9 3 Project description ..................................................................................................................... 14 3.1 Key project components ................................................................................................................................ 14 4 Key environmental issues ....................................................................................................... 19 4.1 Overview...................................................................................................................................................................... 19 4.2 Traffic and Transport ........................................................................................................................................ 20 4.3 Hydrology and Flooding ................................................................................................................................. 24 4.4 Ecology ......................................................................................................................................................................... 26 4.5 Aboriginal Heritage ............................................................................................................................................. 32 4.6 Non-Aboriginal Heritage ................................................................................................................................ 36 4.7 Noise and vibration ............................................................................................................................................ 39 4.8 Socio-economic ..................................................................................................................................................... 40 4.9 Landscape and visual amenity ................................................................................................................ 43 4.10 Land use ...................................................................................................................................................................... 45 5 Other environmental issues ................................................................................................... 48 5.1 Overview...................................................................................................................................................................... 48 5.2 Soils, contamination and water quality ............................................................................................. 48 5.3 Air Quality ................................................................................................................................................................... 51 5.4 Greenhouse gases and climate change .......................................................................................... 52 5.5 Resource and waste management ...................................................................................................... 54 6 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 56 7 References .................................................................................................................................... 57 Attachments Attachment A: Requirements of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Regulation 2000 Albion Park Rail bypass iv State significant infrastructure application report Roads and Maritime Services Abbreviations and Glossary AHIMS Aboriginal Heritage Information Management System ARI Average Recurrence Interval EEC Endangered Ecological Community EPA Environmental Protection Authority EP&A Act Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 EPBC Act Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 ISEPP State Environmental Planning Policy (Infrastructure) 2007 LEP Local Environment Plan LEP Corridor The road corridor gazetted for the bypass of Albion Park Rail in the Wollongong and Shellharbour City Council Local Environment Plans in the

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