Leura Station Upgrade Review of Environmental Factors April 2016 Contents Abbreviations ................................................................................................................ 6 Definitions ..................................................................................................................... 8 Executive summary .................................................................................................... 10 1 Introduction ........................................................................................................... 15 1.1 Overview of the Proposal .......................................................................... 15 1.2 Location of the Proposal ........................................................................... 16 1.3 Existing infrastructure and land uses ........................................................ 16 1.4 Purpose of this Review of Environmental Factors ..................................... 22 2 Need for the Proposal ........................................................................................... 23 2.1 Strategic justification ................................................................................. 23 2.2 Design development ................................................................................. 25 2.3 Alternative options considered .................................................................. 26 2.4 Justification for the preferred option .......................................................... 27 2.5 Further refinements to the preferred option............................................... 28 3 Description of the Proposal ................................................................................... 29 3.1 The Proposal ............................................................................................ 29 3.2 Construction activities ............................................................................... 36 3.3 Property acquisition .................................................................................. 40 3.4 Operation management and maintenance ................................................ 40 4 Statutory considerations ........................................................................................ 41 4.1 Commonwealth legislation ........................................................................ 41 4.2 NSW legislation and regulations ............................................................... 41 4.3 State Environmental Planning Policies ..................................................... 43 4.4 Local environmental planning instrument and development controls ........ 44 4.5 NSW Government policies and strategies................................................. 48 4.6 Ecologically sustainable development ...................................................... 50 5 Community and stakeholder consultation .............................................................. 51 5.1 Stakeholder consultation during concept design ....................................... 51 5.2 Consultation requirements under the Infrastructure SEPP ........................ 51 5.3 Consultation strategy ................................................................................ 53 5.4 Consultation during REF preparation ........................................................ 53 5.5 Public display of the REF .......................................................................... 55 5.6 Aboriginal community involvement ........................................................... 56 5.7 Ongoing consultation ................................................................................ 56 6 Environmental impact assessment ........................................................................ 57 6.1 Traffic and transport ................................................................................. 57 6.2 Urban design, landscape and visual amenity ............................................ 64 6.3 Noise and vibration ................................................................................... 73 6.4 Indigenous heritage .................................................................................. 83 6.5 Non-Indigenous heritage .......................................................................... 84 6.6 Socio-economic impacts ........................................................................... 94 6.7 Biodiversity ............................................................................................... 96 6.8 Contamination, landform, geology and soils ........................................... 104 6.9 Hydrology and water quality ................................................................... 105 6.10 Air quality ............................................................................................... 107 6.11 Waste ..................................................................................................... 108 Leura Station Upgrade Review of Environmental Factors April 2016 2 6.12 Cumulative impacts ................................................................................ 108 6.13 Climate change and sustainability .......................................................... 109 7 Environmental management ............................................................................... 111 7.1 Environmental management plans ......................................................... 111 7.2 Mitigation measures ............................................................................... 111 8 Conclusion .......................................................................................................... 123 References ............................................................................................................... 124 Appendix A Consideration of matters of National Environmental Significance Appendix B Consideration of clause 228 Appendix C Sustainable Design Guidelines checklist Appendix D Neutral or Beneficial Effect Assessment Appendix E Noise assessment Appendix F Landscape and visual assessment report Appendix G Statement of Heritage Impact Appendix H Arborist methodology and biodiversity offset requirement Document control Status: Final REF Date of issue: 14 April 2016 Version: 0.0 Document author: Karen Yale, Kathryne Glover Document reviewers: Katrina Smallwood, Amanda Raleigh © Transport for NSW Leura Station Upgrade Review of Environmental Factors April 2016 3 Figures Figure 1 Planning approval and consultation process for the Proposal ................................... 13 Figure 2 Regional context ....................................................................................................... 17 Figure 3 Site locality map ....................................................................................................... 19 Figure 4 View looking east towards the station building .......................................................... 20 Figure 5 View looking east towards Leura Mall overbridge access stairs ................................ 20 Figure 6 View looking west from Leura Mall overbridge towards the station platform ............. 21 Figure 7 View looking west along Railway Parade towards informal taxi waiting area ............ 21 Figure 8 View looking north from Leura Mall towards Leura Station ....................................... 22 Figure 9 General layout of key elements of the Proposal (indicative only, subject to detailed design) ................................................................................................................................... 30 Figure 10 Plan view of key elements of the Proposal (indicative only, subject to detailed design) ................................................................................................................................... 31 Figure 11 Photomontage looking north towards Leura Station from Leura Mall/Railway Parade ............................................................................................................................................... 33 Figure 12 Photomontage looking south east to Leura Station platform (indicative only) ......... 34 Figure 13 Blue Mountains LEP zoning map ............................................................................ 47 Figure 14 Construction compounds and haulage access ........................................................ 60 Figure 15 Taxi turn area ......................................................................................................... 63 Figure 16 Visual impact assessment viewpoints ..................................................................... 66 Figure 17 Sensitive noise receivers and noise monitoring location ......................................... 75 Figure 18 Section 170 curtilage of Leura Railway Station Group (Source: RailCorp) .............. 85 Figure 19 Listed LEP heritage items within and adjacent to the Proposal site ........................ 86 Figure 20 Tree survey locations ............................................................................................. 98 Figure 21 View of vegetation on railway batters ..................................................................... 99 Figure 22 Tree 1, an Irish Strawberry, at the eastern end of the platform, Leura Station ........ 99 Figure 23 Tree Group 2: Line of trees and shrubs within a garden bed, adjacent to Railway Parade taxi rank ..................................................................................................................