I object strongly to the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade (SSI-8863) project works on the basis that properties have already been purchased and several positions have already been advertised, including a delivery position on the Western Harbour Tunnel project, without waiting for due process.

I am a resident of Cammeray and work in the Sydney CBD, my husband works in North Sydney and our children attend Anzac Park Public School and a childcare centre in Crows Nest. The EIS consultation period must complete (currently scheduled for 30 March). Then, the community feedback must be collated and reviewed by the department of planning and if the project was deemed acceptable, then lastly, conditions of approval must be drawn up before approval is given to purchase further properties and hire people into this project.

I object strongly to the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade (SSI-8863) project works on the basis that a 51% stake in Sydney Motorways Corporation for just over $9b, guarantees an increase in tolls chargeable to motorists of 4% each year or inflation rate, whichever is the higher.

I am a resident of Cammeray and work in the Sydney CBD, my husband works in North Sydney and our children attend Anzac Park Public School and a childcare centre in Crows Nest. If this project is to go ahead I strongly request that a condition of approval is that mass public transportation must be provided on these roadways.

I object strongly to the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade (SSI-8863) project works on the basis that high volumes of trucks will be driving around our suburban streets and carrying significant loads of spoil and toxic materials.

I am a resident of Cammeray and work in the Sydney CBD, my husband works in North Sydney and our children attend Anzac Park Public School and a childcare centre in Crows Nest. The EIS describes that almost a million cubic meters of spoil and sediment, including contaminated materials, will be dumped temporarily in the area and trucked away at various times throughout the normal working day. This translates to high volumes of truck movements (60-120 lorries per day quoted) 24/7 on freeway and local streets.

I understand that for demolition activities the WHSR 2011 (NSW) requires that all hazardous materials are properly removed from buildings prior to any demolition to prevent workers and the public from being exposed to these materials and contaminants. For this reason the EIS cites that there is no need to further assess the presence of hazardous building materials during construction activities. However we know that at least two former dump sites under Cammeray Golf Course and Flat Rock Gully will be bringing up highly toxic materials including asbestos.

I strongly request that a condition of approval for this project is that no trucks will be moving on suburban streets during school peak traffic hours.

I object strongly to the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade (SSI-8863) project works on the basis that the residents and workers who are located near the Westconnex tunnel build have been treated absolutely horrifically to the point where there was a royal enquiry and ongoing damage claims are still being made against the NSW government and contractors.

I am a resident of Cammeray and work in the Sydney CBD, my husband works in North Sydney and our children attend Anzac Park Public School and a childcare centre in Crows Nest. The Department of Transport (RMS) should assume liability for the way it has executed the Westconnex construction (of which the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway are Westconnex part 3b and 4a), which has left destruction in its wake. As community members who live and work and attend school and daycare in the local area, we are facing years of traffic chaos, noise, vibration, dust and hundreds of trucks travelling past homes and office while this project is built. Based on the Westconnex experience, it is likely to cause serious health impacts and serious risk of damage to buildings. The WestConnex project received numerous complaints of houses cracking and subsiding, many at more than 300m away from tunnelling.

The EIS cites that excessive noise will impact more than 5,000 residences. Noise levels and ground vibration during the day will be loud and continuous for 5-6 years, especially when penetrating solid rock. The EIS also cites that the normal working day for work on the project will extend until 10pm on an unspecified number of days. I understand that the stated 18dC at night is like a loud television in your bedroom as you try to sleep.

“Maximum night time noise would be generated during truck arrival, unloading, and departure; rock hammering, some dredging activities; and from air-brakes or metal-on-metal bangs during road tie-in, resurfacing works and oversized deliveries. In some instances, maximum noise levels at night are predicted to exceed noise management by more than 15dB(A) and therefore exceed the sleep disturbance screening level. Maximum noise levels at night are also predicted to exceed the awakening reaction levels at a number of receivers”. “Long term (ie over a year or more) noise increases of greater than 5 dB(A) have been associated with unacceptable mortality risks, along with an unacceptable increase in highly annoyed receptors”.

I strongly request that a condition of approval for this project is that a strict 6pm curfew on noisy activities on weekdays, 1pm on Saturdays, no noisy works on Sundays, and consultation on any proposed exceptions to these curfews. That any complaints of damage due to vibration are investigated and compensated fairly.

I object to this project in its current form for three major reasons:
1. The Western Harbour Tunnel should not be for cars. It should be for public transport instead.
More roads only encourages more cars and in the long term creates even greater traffic congestion. More roads equals more cars which is not sustainable.
Sydney needs much better public transport and this tunnel should be for light rail or electric buses.
2. Some of the exhaust stacks are very close to schools and this poses a health risk to our children. The health of our young generation is another reason why the tunnel should be for public transport and not for cars.
3. The proposal to have access and egress to the tunnel excavation at Flat Rock Creek Drive is very poor, as it would be incredibly damaging to the bushland and trees and this well used outdoor passive recreational space that would take at least 30 years to regrow and rehabilitate. The access and egress point should be from the baseball field that could be quickly replaced afterwards, or at Willoughby Road that has a gentle gradient and quickly replaceable playing field.

I object strongly to the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade (SSI-8863) project works on the basis that the sea floor in the Middle Harbour will be damaged and toxic sediments in Sydney Harbour will be dredged up.

I am a resident of Cammeray and work in the Sydney CBD, my husband works in North Sydney and our children attend Anzac Park Public School and a childcare centre in Crows Nest. I am very concerned about the long-term damage to sea flora and fauna and contamination of construction run-off during this project build. This project is not worth the environmental damage it will cause for our future generations.

I object strongly to the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade (SSI-8863) project works on the basis that the EIS cites that 18,000 people will be impacted by air quality problems which is linked to the poor ventilation design of the tunnels. “Potential health impacts associated with changes in air quality (specifically nitrogen oxide and particulates) within the local community have been assessed and are considered to be tolerable/acceptable”. This is not an acceptable standard of care for the community.

I am a resident of Cammeray and work in the Sydney CBD, my husband works in North Sydney and our children attend Anzac Park Public School and a childcare centre in Crows Nest. During the project build, the quality of the air that we breathe will be compromised due to dust from construction, loss of trees and fumes from trucks waiting to enter worksites at Cammeray Golf Course and Berry’s Bay. The EIS cites that even with rigorous dust mitigation and management measures in place, it is not possible to guarantee that the dust mitigation would be effective all the time. There is the risk that nearby residences, commercial buildings, hotel, cafés and schools might experience occasional dust impacts. Amazingly, the EIS also states that construction dusts are unlikely to represent a serious ongoing problem and health effects would be ‘not significant, a statement which research on similar construction projects does not support.

Following completion of this project, more cars and trucks will be delivered to North Sydney and the freeway and there will be two unfiltered tunnel exhaust stacks on the freeway at Ernest St beside Cammeray Golf Course. The exhaust stacks at each end of the Western Harbour Tunnel produce a concentrated area of pollution. The current Warringah Freeway will increase from 8 lanes to 18 lanes of traffic near schools. Vehicular fumes containing carcinogenic particulates and poisonous carbon monoxide, benzene and nitrogen oxides will be emitted from these unfiltered exhaust chimneys close to schools and homes. Research shows that emissions are most intense within 500m of each stack, but that tiny particles can be detected at up to 1.2km away. North Sydney LGA has the highest density of schools (both public and private) and childcare facilities in all of Australia, total of 9,000 students. Schools within 2km of the double exhaust stacks on Ernest street include: Anzac Park Public School 250m, North Sydney Boys High School 800m, Cammeraygal Senior Campus 800m, Neutral Bay Public School 900m, Cammeray Public School 950m, Marist North Shore 950m, St Marys Primary School 1km, Wenona 1.1km, Monte 1.2km, Redlands 1.2m, and Cammeraygal High School Pacific Highway 1.6km.

Sydney urban air quality is already no longer “very good” by world standards. We had 81 poor to hazardous days in Nov 219 to January 2020. The background (ambient) particulate level pollution is already close or over 8 mcgm/m3 in most areas – the maximum limit in Australia. All of the areas in the North Sydney LGA in the footprint area will have increased air pollution according to Appendix H in this EIS as a result of these projects. If exhaust fumes and particulates from unfiltered stacks are added on days when bushfire smoke is already raising air quality index (AQI) to danger levels, as it did during 2019-2020 bushfires, our air quality situation will be made much worse.

I request that a condition of approval for this project is that air pollution from the Western Harbour Tunnel is continuously monitored during and after construction of this project. And that a response plan in place to make sure that drivers and nearby schools and daycare centres are safe. This plan should include sealed rooms, air filters or purifiers, and possibly high quality fitted masks are available at schools and daycare centres. It should plan for when children need to move indoors and when schools and daycares need to be closed. A condition of approval should also been that the tunnel is closed to all traffic on days when AQI readers are at danger levels.

I object strongly to the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade (SSI-8863) project works on the basis that filtration is not being built into the two tunnel exhaust stacks to be located on the freeway at Ernest St beside Cammeray Golf Course. I am a resident of Cammeray and work in the Sydney CBD, my husband works in North Sydney and our children attend Anzac Park Public School and a childcare centre in Crows Nest.

I understand that longitudinal ventilation systems with a single end stack design is cheaper and the preferred design. This has been effective for road tunnels of 4km and less in Sydney (Sydney Harbour Tunnel, Lane Cove Tunnel, Cross City Tunnel, Eastern Distributor and M5 East). But maintaining air quality is problematic in longer tunnels as concentration increases particularly beyond 5km. Tunnels longer than 5km in other many countries either have filtration (eg, Tokyo Yamate, Madrid Calle 30, Hong Kong CWB Bypass, and Caesena, Italy) or diesel trucks are banned from it (Paris Duplex tunnel, Istanbul Eurasia 6.6km tunnel). Stockholm E4 bypass tunnel is 18km long and has unfiltered stacks, but it has multiple exchange exhaust stacks no more than 3.8km apart and so emitting far smaller quantities of fumes and pumping clean air into the tunnel. Signs in existing Sydney tunnels advise motorists to close all windows and switch ventilation systems to recycle to prevent polluted air entering their vehicles. This is the air that local residents and workers will be expected to breathe.

When the 3.6km Lane Cove Tunnel was being planned, the now NSW Premier campaigned for filtration of exhaust stacks for this works. In Dec 2018 NSW Joint Parliamentary Inquiry into Westconnex and related projects recommended that “filtration be installed for the ventilation stacks” (Rec 13). But NSW Government has not implemented this recommendation and is now planning 11 more unfiltered tunnel exhaust stacks across Sydney on tunnels over 5 km long. The NorthConnex due to open in mid 2020 is the first of these long tunnels. At 9km it will be the world’s first tunnel over 5km that has no filtration built into its tunnel exhaust stacks and will allow diesel trucks to use it. The Western Harbour Tunnel is 8km long. Additional cost of filtration would be less that 5% of project costs for Western Harbour Tunnel. At the very least, the provision for filtration is much cheaper than the cost of retrofitting filtration after build.

I strongly request that a condition of approval for this project is that:
- Filtration or the provision for filtration is included in the build plans for tunnel exhaust stacks, or that diesel trucks are banned from using the Western Harbour Tunnel; and
- The impact on air quality and health of residents and workers in the area surrounding NorthConnex should be assessed for 18-24 months after opening before tunnels of similar design are built.

In my view this project is a disaster at all levels.
This is $16bn project (which equates to $53m per northern beaches resident), with no clear business case. Shouldn't we be spending tax payers' money to potentially help those who have suffered hardship from the recent bush fires or help those whose lives have been destroyed by the COVID-19 crisis. I want to see the business case for this project - none has been made available to the public. Have we considered alternative transport options to this project? We have seen the effects of climate change first hand in this country - We should be spending on our public transport to help reduce pollution but to build a tunnel with unfiltered stacks, which will pump pollutants into areas highly populated by children is criminal.
There is a 9,000 page EIS in local libraries, which are now closed due to COVID-19. This is ridiculous.
Why won't Gladyse accept the petition we have signed to oppose this project?
This project has to be suspended.

I object strongly to the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade (SSI-8863) project works on the basis of the length of time the community has had to absorb and respond to the EIS by 30 March 2020.

I am a resident of Cammeray and work in the Sydney CBD, my husband works in North Sydney and our children attend Anzac Park Public School and a childcare centre in Crows Nest. The current submission period has allowed a total of 6 weeks to review 28 chapters at almost 1,200 pages plus thousands of pages in appendices, totalling more than 9,000 pages of information. With an average reading time of 250 words per minute and 1,000 words per page, it would take an average person 15 hours per day, every day over the full six weeks to read without pause.

In the last 2 (extra) weeks, community members have been unable to consult with one another due to the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. Many community members are now working from home full-time and overseeing the online studies of our children, while being asked to comment on a project with impacts outlined over 9000+ pages, that we cannot discuss due to social distancing restrictions.

I strongly request that an indefinite extension is applied to this EIS consultation period with a date to be determined once the impact of the pandemic is known and mitigated for, and we can return our focus to this project.