BRISBANE URBAN CORRIDOR PLANNING Saturday 15 June 2002
Good Afternoon Ladies and Gentlemen.
My name is Heather Barns and I am from the Bulimba Creek Catchment Coordination Committee Inc and my assistant Barry Wilson from The Rivermouth Action Group Inc.
[OHP 0000] (list of groups)
We are representing the concerns of many diverse environment groups with this presentation as a result of the ENVIRONMENT Group’s meeting held on 20 April 2002
[OHP 000] (web site address) www.rag.org.au/buc/
We will not have the time to read out each of the OHP as most of them are in your folders. The Rivermouth Action Group Inc web site will contains this and other information about our presentation and more will be put on the site as and when it continues to come to hand.
[OHP 00] “Beneficial Asset” definition from EPA Act
Before we continue we hope that the members of this meeting are aware that under Queensland State Legislation the Brisbane Urban Corridor (BUC) is a State Controlled Road and as such is a “Beneficial Asset” and the Queensland Government is under no obligation to reduce the noise impact to any noise level limit.
[OHP 0] Where some OHP pages came from.
We acknowledge that four of our OHP pages came from Orana Development Employment Council and Australian Inland Rail Express Conference, held in Dubbo 5 April 2001
Australasian Railway Association OHP: REAL COST OF ROADS where the last sentence says it all: “Every $1 collected from road users costs the community $2 in adverse social & health issues.”
1. AIR POLLUTION
Emissions from trucks – is there a national standard if so what is it or if not, when will we have one?
[OHT 2,3,4,5 – trucks exhausts]
2 = Morningside 4 June 02
3=Coronation Drive 4 Sept 00
4=Tingalpa 14 Mar 97
5= Tingalpa 14 Mar 97
Heavy transport and public transport would have less harmful emissions if natural gas was used as fuel opposed to diesel fuel.
There is a great need for more and better data on air quality/pollution along the BUC corridor
[OHT 6]Map of monitoring sites
6=Map of South East Queensland EPA air monitoring sites
[OHT 7]Ozone graph February 2002
7=Graph for February 2002 notice one hour the limit of 100 ppm for ozone was exceed at the Rocklea monitoring site to 120 ppm. The World Health Organization recommends that 80 ppm one hour level for Ozone never be exceeded
[OHP 8]Ozone graph March 2002
8=Graph for March 2002 notice the limit for ozone exceed at the Rocklea monitoring site. The one hour level of 100 ppm was exceeded to 110 ppm approx and the four hour level of 80 ppm was almost exceeded.
Map of Ozone cloud to be inserted here
Medical research shows that fine particles which are hazardous to health are released from diesel exhaust systems.
[OHP 9]
Diesel’s Cancer Risk Dwarfs All Other Air Toxics
There is a need for strict regulations, policing and enforcement to protect the health and safety of people and to protect the natural environment along the BUC and all Queensland residents
(also see Lung Function)(new page)
[OHP 9a]
We are reducing sulfur content in Queensland Diesel fuel to 50 ppm but in the USA they are reducing in diesel sulfur content to 15 ppm to introduce anti-pollution catalytic converters.
There have been concerns expressed about odours etc emanating from cattle trucks.
(excrement and urine – Q Fever, Brucellosis)
2. WATER POLLUTION
[OHT 10 – Mimosa creek crossing Kessels Road]
Water quality at creek crossings in particular is affected
Run-off from roads - diesel and oil released (leaked) by vehicles
- silt/sediment from wheels/loads as well as from properties
[OHT 11 – SQID] pictures from BCC web site
Run-off goes directly into stormwater system and directly into the creek systems
Need to upgrade road drainage to cope with run-off (traps?)
Dangerous and toxic goods
[OHT 12 – Dangerous Goods spill handling equipment]
fire stations now routinely send only one vehicle,
(as that is all they have) if people trapped in one vehicle and ruptured
tank spillage, they would naturally deal with the people first, while
fuel etc left to filter into the stormwater system through the drains
without being treated/contained.
The Queensland Government has announced that the Balmoral Fire Station is being closed thus one less back up available if required during a major emergency along the BUC
3. NOISE POLLUTION
Related to air pollution – as trucks labour on steep gradients, both the air and noise pollution levels increase; also at traffic lights as they work through the gears to gain speed.
[OHP 13]Changing the type road surface is only short term solution.
Qld Standards for noise – L10 18 hour 68 dB therefore (10% of the time noise level can exceed 68 decibels – taken over 18 hour period) that is 6 min per hour.
[OHT 14 – graph of L1, L5, L10, L50, L95, L99] results from data gathered outside 193 Mt Gravatt Capalaba Rd Wednesday 29 May 2002 6.00 am to 12:00 am 18h results were 50% of the time over 68 dB
[OHP 14 a– graph of noise recordings in one second intervals at 193 Mt Gravatt Capalaba Road on 29 May 2002.] Wednesday 6.00 am to 12:00 am 18 Hours
[OHP 15 - graph 6am 31/5/02 to 5pm 2/6/02 with L10 of 73.6 dB over 59 hours]
[6:00 am Friday 31 May 02 to Sunday 5.00 pm 2 June 2002 total 59 hours 1 second readings][OHP 16 - graph 6 am 31/5/02 to 5 pm 2/6/02 one second readings over 59 hours.]
4. VEGETATION
[OHP 17] 30 metres of dense vegetation may reduce noise by 3 dB A
Dense planting trees along corridor with under-story will not reduce the noise to State level unless it were at least 90 meters wide now!
Lack of native species along corridor (obviously need to select species that allow for vision and suitable size)
Exotic species can become a threat to the native vegetation that provides habitat and food sources for wildlife
Create greenspace buffer zones to reduce noise and air pollution
Greenspace corridor would reduce some of the particulate emissions on the residents
CONCLUSION
- The study needs to take into consideration the future
- The approved expansion of Port of Brisbane will mean a major increase of traffic along this corridor
- Has planning taken this extra traffic into consideration – NO!
o Current consultation of Second Gateway crossing will result in a major increase of traffic along this BUC corridor
- What is Department Main Roads proposing to overcome the impact of extra traffic on BUC over the next 20 years?
o Australia Trade Coast – airport expansion
- Has the extra traffic from this been taken into account?
Solutions to managing this corridor need to look at the future as well as the present
Pressures on the natural environment are only going to increase as there are more people, infrastructure (including roads), traffic along this and other corridors
Long-term town and regional planning is necessary in order to ensure adequate resources are available to manage the effects on the environment
If the BUC road corridor is made an easier route, then more traffic will use it, compounding current problems
Widening the road or eliminating the traffic lights is only a short term solution
[OHT 18] 90% of voters believe that rail is safer than large & heavy trucks.
[OHP 18a] Map of proposed rail lineAIRE Rail Proposal is to bring double sacked 1.8 to 2 km long container trains from Vic and NSW to Charlton (west of Toowoomba) and later Acacia Ridge in transit to Port of Brisbane
[OHP 19] Mr Peter Beattie’s letter stating no new railIn the mid-term, possibly truck the top layer (2 kilometres)of containers from Acacia Ridge to Port (Beattie has ruled out any new rail line to the port letter dated 11 Aug 1997.)
[OHP 19a] OHP from Maunsell-McIntyre at the AIRE conferenceTable of options train length and travelling times The newly proposed rail line from Melbourne to Port of Brisbane will in the short term result in convoys of trucks from Charlton (outside Toowoomba) to the Port via the BUC and other roads
· The whole community needs to be fully informed of the bigger picture, now and in the future. The Ipswich Motorway to six lanes, Gateway Motorway to six lanes, Brisbane Urban Corridor ( a road linking them) has long sections of only four lanes.
It is false economics to increase the level of heavy transport along Brisbane’s residential road corridors, in order to speed goods to Sydney and Melbourne rather continue their journey by shipping? Brisbane residents’ health will suffer in order to save southern companies money and time. The Smart State pollutes Brisbane to profit southern States & companies.
The health of the community is directly related to the health of the environment.
All these huge infrastructure development are and will directly impact not only on the BUC corridor’s wildlife and residents but all who live and work in the adjacent areas.
[Port of Brisbane, Australia Trade Coast, Airport Expansion, 2nd Gateway Crossing, Train line from Melbourne to Acacia Ridge Freight Rail Yards]
[OHP 20] Exhaust Stack on the M5 in Sydney.
For those who would propose a tunnel under Mt Gravatt! Where do we put this exhaust stack?
This page is maintained by
The Rivermouth Action Group Inc
as a community service.
E-mail: activist@rag.org.au