DUPLICATION OF TOURLE STREET AND CORMORANT ROAD KOORAGANG Review of Environmental Factors VOLUME 1 MAIN REPORT SEPTEMBER 2014 RMS 14.398 ISBN: 978-1-925093-93-3 (blank page) Roads and Maritime Services Duplication of Tourle Street and Cormorant Road Kooragang Review of environmental factors September 2014 Prepared by Parsons Brinckerhoff Australia Pty Limited Level 3 51 – 55 Bolton Street NEWCASTLE NSW 2300 PO Box 1162 NEWCASTLE NSW 2300 Australia Telephone +61 2 4929 8300 Facsimile +61 2 4929 8382 Email [email protected] Copyright in the drawings, information and data recorded in this document (the information) is the property of Parsons Brinckerhoff. This document and the information are solely for the use of the authorised recipient and this document may not be used, copied or reproduced in whole or part for any purpose other than that for which it was supplied by Parsons Brinckerhoff. Parsons Brinckerhoff makes no representation, undertakes no duty and accepts no responsibility to any third party who may use or rely upon this document or the information. Revision Details Date Amended By 00 Original 13 January 2014 N. Elvers 01 Draft 17 June 2014 S.Crick/N.Elvers 02 Final Draft 18 June 2014 S.Crick 03 Final – amended for public display 4 September 2014 N.Elvers Authors: Natalie Elvers, Steven Crick ................................. Signed: Reviewer: Hugh Swinbourne.................................................. Signed: Approved by: Greg Collins ........................................................... Signed: Date: 4 September 2014................................................. Distribution: Roads and Maritime Services, Parsons Brinckerhoff Please note that when viewed electronically this document may contain pages that have been intentionally left blank. These blank pages may occur because in consideration of the environment and for your convenience, this document has been set up so that it can be printed correctly in double-sided format. Executive summary Background Tourle Street and Cormorant Road form part of a regional transport corridor connecting the City of Newcastle with the southern section of the Port of Newcastle and industrial operations on Kooragang Island. This route serves as: A primary means of accessing regional centres to the north of Newcastle A link to employment centres in the Lower Hunter that are critical to the region’s ongoing rapid growth and provide significant national and State benefits, given the importance of the Port of Newcastle as a commodity export port A key freight route associated with the Port of Newcastle and industrial operations on Kooragang Island. In order to improve travel times and provide a safer environment for all road users, the Australian and NSW Governments have committed funding for the upgrade, which has an anticipated overall cost in the order of $100 million. The proposal Roads and Maritime Services (Roads and Maritime) propose to duplicate a 3.8 kilometre (km) section of Tourle Street and Cormorant Road at Kooragang, NSW (the proposal). The proposal is needed to address existing traffic congestion and aims to cater for predicted increases in traffic movements along this corridor. Key features of the proposal include: Construction of a new two lane reinforced concrete bridge located immediately to the west of the existing bridge over the Hunter River Construction of new southern and northern bridge approaches Widening of Tourle Street and Cormorant Road to four lanes (two lanes in each direction) from about 350 metres (m) to the north of the intersection with Industrial Drive to about 200 m west of the intersection with Egret Street. A preferred option for the proposal was developed by considering design options that offered reduced environmental impacts on an adjacent freshwater pond that was found to contain protected flora and fauna species. The preferred option was found to minimise these impacts as far as possible, while still meeting the proposal objectives. Need for the proposal The Tourle Street and Cormorant Road route provides the primary means of accessing regional centres to the north of Newcastle, which include RAAF Base Williamtown (including Newcastle Airport) and Port Stephens (a major population, employment and tourist centre). The sections of Tourle Street and Cormorant Road subject to the proposal currently do not have sufficient capacity to accommodate existing and future travel demand. Between the Industrial Drive intersection and the Teal Street roundabout, this route is predominantly a two-lane, two-way road (connecting to four-lane, two-way roads at either end). Consequently, the corridor suffers from Duplication of Tourle Street and Cormorant Road, Kooragang Island i Review of Environmental Factors traffic congestion particularly during peak periods with traffic required to merge from two lanes to one lane when travelling in either direction. Future usage will increase, driven by the expansion of the Port of Newcastle, growth of the RAAF Base Williamtown/Newcastle Airport, and regional population and employment growth. The proposal is needed to improve the traffic and freight efficiency along this section of road and would be consistent with the strategic aims and directions of the NSW Government’s strategic planning documents, as discussed in Chapter 2 of this Review of Environmental Factors (REF). Options considered A number of options were considered for the proposal and are discussed further in Section 2.5 of this REF. Four design options for the main alignment of Tourle Street and Cormorant Road have been investigated over the life of the proposal. The preferred option, as considered in this report, was determined by considering a design that offered a reduced footprint, with minimal environmental impacts where possible. The preferred option, which is the subject of this REF, would best achieve each of the proposal objectives and assessment criteria identified to assess the various proposal options. Statutory and planning framework State Environmental Planning Policy (Infrastructure) 2007 (ISEPP) applies to the proposal. Under clause 94 of the ISEPP, the proposal is considered development for the purposes of a road or road infrastructure facilities. ISEPP allows Roads and Maritime to undertake this type of development without development consent from Newcastle City Council. For the purposes of the proposal, Roads and Maritime is the proponent and the determining authority for the proposal and is required to prepare a REF under Part 5 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (EP&A Act). An assessment of the proposal’s potential impact on matters of national environmental significance (MNES) has been conducted in accordance with the Commonwealth Government’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act). The Green and Golden Bell Frog (GGBF), which is listed as threatened under the EPBC Act, was detected during field surveys for the proposal. Based on available information and likely impacts of the proposal, assessments of significance for the GGBF prepared under the NSW EP&A Act and Commonwealth EPBC Act concluded that, whilst the proposal would trigger listed thresholds for impacts upon this species, such impacts are not likely to be significant in nature. Nevertheless, Roads and Maritime would make an assessment as to whether the proposal is referred due to impacts that align with thresholds listed in the EPBC Act Policy Statement 3.19 (Department of the Environment Water Heritage and the Arts 2009a). Community and stakeholder consultation Throughout the development of the proposal, the Roads and Maritime has undertaken a range of consultation activities with the community and stakeholders, including meetings and correspondence with Newcastle City Council, the community and other key stakeholders. The preferred design option was placed on public display in November 2013. Twelve submissions were received with general support for the proposal, along with some suggested minor enhancements to the design. The current proposal has been developed with consideration of feedback received from the community and stakeholders over the history of the proposal. ii Duplication of Tourle Street and Cormorant Road, Kooragang Island Review of Environmental Factors During preparation of the REF, Roads and Maritime also consulted with government agencies including the Office of Environment and Heritage, Newcastle City Council, NSW Environment Protection Authority, NSW Department of Primary Industries (Fisheries), NSW Maritime, NSW Office of Water and the Hunter-Central River Catchment Management Authority. Future community and stakeholder consultation would continue with all stakeholders throughout the design and construction phases of the proposal and through public display of the REF (refer to Chapter 5). Environmental impacts A number of detailed technical investigations were undertaken to assess the potential impacts of the proposal and associated works, and to identify safeguards and management measures to mitigate these impacts. Key issues investigated included biodiversity, water quality and hydrology, noise and vibration and contaminated land. Beneficial effects of the proposal would include improved road safety and the alleviation of traffic congestion along Tourle Street and Cormorant Road. These improvements would result in benefits to the local community and motorists travelling to the north of Newcastle. A series of negative environmental impacts have been identified as likely to