1. If the noise barrier is not sufficient for the extra noise caused in the construction of the expanded road and as my house will then back onto this road, double glazing windows will be needed for my home. 2. I would also like a building assessment inspection for my home to be done prior to construction. 3.How will dust and air pollution be controlled during this construction? 4. Only one day without construction (ie Sundays) - 1/7th of a week is a very small amount of peace for residents

The siting of the Northern Beaches Hospital has been a huge planning blunder, located as it is atop not one but at least five bushland catchments. The majority of community submissions to the State Government along with community feedback in many forums, constantly objected to the original site for a myriad of reasons and proposed alternatives (notably Mona Vale Hospital) - all to no avail.

Subsequent to the construction approval and clearing of bushland on the Northern Beaches Hospital site in 2014 (which wiped out the Endangered Ecological Community that had existed here for aeons) - the public is now invited to comment on the huge changes envisaged to be necessary for the road network surrounding the site to accommodate the new hospital, changes which will come at a massive financial, ecological and aesthetic cost to the community, which must now `adapt' to the ramifications of the foolish decision to site the hospital on this location in the first place.

I will outline only a few of these impacts here due to limited time availability:

Stage II Roadworks - which include a 12-lane Warringah Road - will adversely affect and cause increased urban runoff, nutrient enrichment and pollution into a network of creeks feeding three lagoons - Manly Lagoon, Curl Curl Lagoon and Narrabeen Lagoon along with creeks traversing Garigal National Park in Forestville in the catchments of upper Middle Harbour and Bantry Bay. There will be similar detrimental impacts on creeks flowing through nearby bushland reserves. This will facilitate conditions for increased invasion by noxious and environmental weeds. Large reserves likely to be impacted by increased urban runoff from Stage II works include Allenby Park, Forestville Park, Garigal National Park Forestville and Garigal National Park, as yet unprotected bushland in Oxford Falls and the Manly-Warringah War Memorial Park. Smaller reserves affected include Jindabyne Reserve (which has a stand of Coachwood [Ceratopetalum apetalum]), Rabbett Reserve and Peppercorn Park.

It must be highlighted that the area proposed for Stage II Roadworks is directly above Manly Warringah War Memorial Park - the district's largest protected reserve and one greatly treasured by the local community. It has a network of creeks flowing into a freshwater reservoir (Manly Dam) which - a rarity in metropolitan Sydney,- remains clean enough for swimming.

Water runoff from the top of the catchment is critical to the health of the riparian zone and also influence the wider surrounding vegetation via hydrological changes such as increased nitrogen levels. Curl Curl Creek is predicted to experience a 10% increase in water runoff from the addition of new, impervious surfaces. As this is likely to affect Red Crown Toadlet breeding habitat, a detention basin is proposed as a mitigation measure. These detention basins inevitably fail to achieve their desired objectives and have to be endlessly maintained at cost to residents. The existing bushland at the top of the catchment already naturally filtered out nutrients at no cost and far better than any artificial constructs will ever do.

Developments in the last 15 years above Manly Dam have already seen a deterioration of its previously near-pristine major feeder creek (Curl Curl Creek). Stage II proposals - such as vastly increased traffic along Aquatic Drive to create another busy access onto Wakehurst Parkway; widening of Allambie Road; and massive road-widening along Warringah Rd - will contribute to an increase in hard surfaces causing a further decline of water quality in Manly Warringah War Memorial Park - and hence flow on to Manly Lagoon and the iconic surfing beaches of Manly and district.

Road-widening in Allambie Heights and Frenchs Forest, such as Allambie Rd, Frenchs Forest Rd, Wakehurst Parkway, and Aquatic Drive, will also be detrimental to the environmental and visual amenity of the area. It would involve destruction of more bushland including endangered Duffy's Forest bushland, iconic remnant native trees and hence also adversely affect wildlife. Indeed, this vital wildlife corridor on and around the hospital site has, in the last ten years, facilitated the southward return of wallabies, bandicoots, echidnas, lyre-birds and other species from the bushland reserves around Hawkesbury River and beyond to re-populate habitats in Warrinhgah including Manly Dam and neighbouring Condover Reserve, North Balgowlah and Allenby Park, Allambie Hts. This followed intensive efforts by Northern Sydney councils and NPWS to control predatory foxes and feral cats. As stated, a large section of this Category 1 Bushland corridor, was allowed to be destroyed in 2014 under "State Significant" legislation for the initial construction of the hospital. The remainder looks set to be annihilated by the Stage II Roadworks. Hence it is predicted that this local stand of forest, an endangered ecological community (DFEC) will become extinct - a terrible indictment on management agencies. The urgent imperative to protect DEFC's should be given top priority but instead is usually over-ridden by the push for development.

Frenchs Forest and adjacent area is known locally as "The Forest" due to the extensive bushland and tranquil, semi-rural aspect of the area a mere sixty years ago. Stage II roadwork proposals would destroy large areas of the remaining "forest", resulting in an unquantifiable loss of flora and fauna - and transform Frenchs Forest into a busy, impersonal, fast-paced urban area not unlike North Sydney, complete with massive traffic interchanges, tunnels, and increased noise and air pollution. This would certainly not be a pleasant, recuperative location for hospital patients.

20th August, 2015


Submission to Stage 2 Northern Beaches Hospital Road Connectivity and Network Enhancement Project

This submission is on behalf of the Belrose Rural Community Association (BRCA). Our association's membership includes local residents, some non government organisations, some local businesses, a primary school and a
high school.

We object to Stage Two of the roadworks, we are in opposition for the following reasons:

* The hospital access is secured with the widening of Frenchs Forest Road. We consider that Frenchs Forest Road should become a State Road and the cost of construction, management and maintenance should be borne by the NSW State Government. This road provides access for three major State Government facilities.

* The proposed Stage 2 works are grossly destructive and show no substantial benefit. Even worse, the proposed roadworks will lead to an increase in car use and public transport will lose out. We are familiar with the public transport options in this area, or rather the lack of them, and demand improvements of the public transport options rather than more roads. As for active transport, the enclosure of sections of the shared path between noise barrier and retaining wall provides an unsafe and hostile environment, discouraging this mode of transport.

* We oppose Stage 2 as it is destructive to the iconic forest, named after Mr French, after whom the suburb of Frenchs Forest was named. The historic content would be annihilated.

* It is predicted that the local stand of forest, an endangered ecological community (DFEC) will become extinct. The forest is one of the two character trademarks of the Northern Beaches. To wipe out the forest appearance when travelling along Warringah Road in the area surrounding and adjacent to the Northern Beaches Hospital is ensuring the loss of identity of the location.

* The preservation of this endangered ecological community must be a priority. The proposed works make no attempt at all to preserve this very important community.

* We oppose the destruction of the North- South wildlife corridor for terrestrial fauna. Your argument that no endangered terrestrial fauna species have been documented is completely unsatisfactory on two counts:
1. the SMEC's surveys have been done over a very limited time
2. the complete dismissal of the fact that common species like the swamp wallaby will become locally threatened and extinct in the Manly Dam bushland area.




We further insist, that if this project goes ahead, offsets are sought from no other location than in the adjacent local bushland and affected water catchment areas.

In conclusion, the proposed destruction is not worth saving a few seconds of travel time, which is all one can expect according to the graph that has been included in the executive summary for the Road works.
Stage two works are by no means essential and we object to this work being carried out.


Yours faithfully




Dr. Conny Harris
President

The Right turn from Mona Vale Rd Eastbound into Forest Way Southbound currently has a double Right turning lane of some length. The queue for Right turning traffic at this intersection during the evening peak can sometimes extend around the corner (90kmh zone) creating rear-ender accident risks, and emergency braking is evident on the road. There is ample space in the median strip to double the capacity of the (double) RIght turn lane, which could alleviate this safety concern, and provide for increased traffic access to the Northern Beaches Hospital.

The Stage 2 works and the Starkey St pedestrian bridge project (hopefully with syncing of the 4 sets of traffic lights in the area) will definitely improve the movement of through traffic.

However, the volume of traffic to and from Roseville Chase (particularly as these works will deliver traffic to Roseville Chase quicker in the morning peak) may only be alleviated by the construction of the Northern Beaches Tunnel between the Burnt Bridge Deviation and the Warringah Freeway at Cammeray.

A Northern Beaches Tunnel would carry most Sydney city, South/Woolongong, Kingsford Smith and Badgery's Creek Airport, North Sydney and St. Leonards bound traffic off Warringah Rd (and the Spit Bridge/Military Rd corridor) to/from Pittwater, Warringah, and Manly LGA's.

There is great concern about the planned excessive widening of Warringah Rd. for the new hospital.
Most worrying is the destruction of native bush-land that is one of the last stands of an endangered ecological community, namely Duffy's Forest type Ecological Community.
Many people from Warringah and Manly protested strongly to save another area of bush-land of the same type in the catchment of Manly Warringah War Memorial Park in 1999. That was ripped up by bulldozers for the Ardel site.
Not only is the native forest adjacent to the hospital and across Wakehurst Parkway endangered, it provides an essential wildlife corridor between Manly Dam and Narrabeen Lagoon.
Surely it would not be necessary to widen Warringah Rd to the extent proposed if more attention was given to a rapid transit lane for public transport, ie buses, between Dee Why and Chatswood.
Why has this not been given priority?
Protect the environment and give more consideration to public transport.

I am a nearby resident of the proposed road widening and object strongly to the scale of the proposal. The remnant forest is at the top of the catchment for Manly Dam and clearing will adversely affect the flow of water into the creek/s leading into the dam. The forest itself is an endangered ecological community and is also the only bushland corridor for wildlife moving between Narrabeen Lagoon catchment/Oxford Falls and Manly Warringah War Memorial Park. A very large area of bushland has already been cleared for construction of the hospital and that remaining is the only visible "forest" in this area of Frenchs Forest. Also, there is little point in widening the road in one area when it is then funnelled back onto smaller roads further along the route - this saves very little commuting time at a very big cost to the environment.

I am again voicing my opposition to the proposed rebuilding of Manly Vale school with large road systems on sensitive endangered land . To give approval to this development is vandalism of the highest order with no regard whatsoever for endangered wildlife, the untouched heathland and future generations of children.It needs to be placed on the footprint of the current school buildings and hence preserve out besutiful tressured land.

I am again voicing my opposition to the proposed rebuilding of Manly Vale school with large road systems on sensitive endangered land . To give approval to this development is vandalism of the highest order with no regard whatsoever for endangered wildlife, the untouched heathland and future generations of children.It needs to be placed on the footprint of the current school buildings and hence preserve out besutiful tressured land.

I object to these massive new projected roadworks at the top of the sensitive Manly Dam Catchment. The water runoff from this project will be extremely detrimental, and detention basins interfere with water flows, cause weed invasion problems and are expensive to maintain.

The North-South wildlife corridor for terrestrial fauna will be destroyed. The spotted tail quoll is likely to need this corridor, and our swamp wallabies will not be able to survive if their access is cut off as planned.

The community has been passionate over very many years to protect Manly Dam's precious bushland catchment. Conservation measures have ensured thecomparative health of the creeks that feed into Manly Dam, Manly Lagoon and ultimately Manly's famous surfing beaches. Constructing massive road over-developments, hard surfaces and Los Angeles style freeways in this sensitive area can only lead to extensive environmental degradation.

Water runoff from the top of the catchment is critical to the health of riparian areas and creeks themselves and also influence the wider surrounding vegetation via hydrological changes. Curl Curl Creek is predicted to experience an increase of inflowing run-off water from 10% addled impervious surfaces. As this is likely to affect Red Crown Toadlet breeding habitat a detention basin is proposed as a mitigation measure and nitrogen levels are forecasted to increase. These detention basins come with their own massive suite of problems, interrupt water flows and cause ongoing invasive weed blooms.

It is predicted that the local stand of forest, an endangered ecological community (DFEC) will become extinct. This prediction should in itself immediately stop the proposal. Any endangered ecological community deserves highest priority consideration and this has not happened. The forest acts as habitat and as a huge sponge and its destruction will further increase the load of water rushing into creeks. It further will vastly decrease the biodiversity of the catchment, its flora and fauna.


The North- South wildlife corridor for terrestrial fauna will be destroyed. SMECs surveys have in the previous Stage 1 assessment missed several species . The spotted tail quoll was recently found in the Oxford Falls Valley and it is highly likely to need this north-south corridor at certain times. Further our common swamp wallabies will not be able to survive if their access is cut off as planned. The local population will become endangered very quickly and will become extinct. Dan Ramp's study does not justify the destruction of this corridor.

The forest is one of the two icons of the Northern Beaches. To wipe out the forest appearance when travelling along Warringah Road in the area surrounding and adjacent to the Northern Beaches Hospital is ensuring the loss of identity of the location and it will be visible to a huge area. The visual impact statement describes the changes as most dramatic.

If this unfortunate project goes ahead, offsets should be sought in the adjacent local bushland and affected water catchment areas- not elsewhere.

The proposed destruction is not worth saving a few seconds of travel time, which is all one can expect according to the graph that has been included in the executive summary for the Road works. The hospital access is secured with the widening of Frenchs Forest Road. Stage two works are by no means essential .