Botany Bay and Catchment Alliance

 Les Kennedy, Sydney Morning Herald
September 5, 2007 By the clock, it was not a serious breach of the Sydney Airport curfew - but a magistrate has put a high price on the cost to residents in interrupted sleep: a record $167,500 fine for the offending airline, Gulf Air. (more…)

The latest No Aircraft Noise newsletter from Allan Rees:  NAN Newsletter August 2007   Features include:  Why the Tax Holiday for Aviation Fuel; Curfew should be longer; Macquarie still wants shops at airport; Anthony Albanese to arrive by parachute?

A survey of aircraft noise and its impact on self-assessed quality of life was conducted in Sydney by A/Prof Deborah Black and Prof John Black of UNSW. Subjects (aged 15 - 87) chronically exposed to aircraft noise have odds of 2.61 61 (95% CI 1.42 - 4 .80) of having stress, and those chronic noise stress individuals have odds of 2.74 (95% CI 1.55 - 4.84) of having hypertension compared with those without chronic noise stress. New research design - a novel intervention based on meditation - is outlined for application by environmental managers wishing to be more pro-active in embracing health impacts of airport operations…..read full paper…

MTAG has some very important news on the F6 and a new proposal for an ‘Inner West Motorway’ being considered, very quietly by the RTA. Thanks to the Greens request for all documents regarding the F6 and Johnstons Creek Extension(JCE), more information keeps coming to light. The latest round of documents reveals the reason that the Campbell St section of the JCE is being kept on the maps. You can view the documents at the EcoTransit Sydney  website.

We are also proud to announce that Fiona Campbell has agreed to stay on for one more year as the President of MTAG, with Leah Mason signing up for Vice President, and Claudine Moutou remaining in the Secretary’s position. The President’s report demonstrated just how much we’ve
achieved in our first year as an incorporated association! Thanks to everyone who has contributed so far.

The solution being proposed for the truck problems from Port Botany is to run the trucking & warehouse operations 24/7.If you go to Appendix E (Traffic Study) of the Vopak Biodiesal Proposal - currently on exhibition with the Department of Planning - this is what is written in section 2.6 -  Planned Expanison of Port Botany

It is noted that the current arterial road system that provides access into the Port Botany and Kingsford Smith Arport precinct, and in particular General Homes Drive and the M5East is currently operating close to capacity during commuter peak periods.  Information obtained from the Sydney Ports Corporation documentation indicates that the planned expansion of Port Botany will double daily traffic even with a higher rail (40%) split in the future.  The planned increase in traffic will be managed through expanding the vehicle operating times for road haulage over 7 days a week and 24 hours a day.  Instead of concentrating around the working week and typical normal working day.  The arrival of heavy vehicles is proposed to be managed through providing time slots for specified vehicles at container sites and terminals situated in the area.”

Read the No Aircraft Noise Newsletter for March 2006