Controversial southern section of the Bunbury Outer Ring Road given Commonwealth approval

The controversial southern section of the Bunbury Outer Ring Road has been given Federal environmental approval, leaving just one more signature before construction will go ahead. The approval came just days after WA’s Shadow transport minister Shane Love called for more transparency on the project, labelling the State Government’s handling of the project as “incompetence”. Local environmental groups have also vowed to keep fighting against the southern section of the BORR, which they believe will have a huge impact on endangered species in the area. A spokesperson from the Commonwealth’s Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, overseen by Cabinet ministers Chris Bowen and Tanya Plibersek, said approvals for the BORR were signed off last month. “On 29 June 2022, a delegate of the minister approved the Bunbury Outer Ring Road Southern Section project, with conditions to manage impacts to nationally protected matters,” the spokesperson said. “Thorough consideration was given to the potential for impacts on EPBC Act listed threatened species and ecological communities and all efforts were made to avoid or minimise these impacts where possible.” Construction costs of the Bunbury Outer Ring Road have blown out to $1.25 billion, the State Government committing a further $400 million to the project in the 2022-23 Budget after the Federal Government committed an extra $320m for Stages 2 and 3 of the BORR in its own budget documents handed down on March 29. In WA’s Parliament on June 22 Mr Love WA’s said the BORR, which is the most expensive piece of road infrastructure in WA’s history, has had massive cost blowouts while being radically reduced in scope, and believed the government was “now spending $1.25b for a suburban road”. “The massive budget blowout has seen the project go from $852m when it was first announced in 2018 to now costing $1.25b,” Mr Love said. “To make matters worse, four roundabouts will replace flyovers, meaning the project will now be 27km of standard road rather than 27km of freeway.” One week later, the Federal minister gave the Commonwealth’s tick of approval for the project, with some conditions. “These conditions include requirements to prepare suitable management plans, and provide environmental offsets for listed Black Cockatoos, Western Ringtail Possum, Banksia Woodlands and Tuart Woodlands and Forests,” the departmental spokesperson said. “The Bunbury Outer Ring Road Southern Section project underwent a comprehensive and rigorous assessment process under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.” But members of a local environmental group, Friends of the Gelorup Corridor, feel these conditions don’t provide enough protection, and have written to Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek, urging her to halt construction on the southern section. The Federal Government has approved the southern BORR through Gelorup Corridor,” a group spokesperson said in a statement. “However, clearing cannot occur unless Minister Plibersek signs the environmental management plans,” the spokesperson said. “We believe there are a number of environmental conditions that the proponent is unlikely to meet and hence we’re asking the minister to halt the proposal. Among the concerns are the impacts clearing will have on the western ringtail possums, black stripe minnow and black cockatoos. The department said these concerns were taken into account when making the decision. “Department received a number of public comments from interested stakeholders during the referral and assessment stages of this project, which were all considered by the ministers delegate in making the final decision,” the spokesperson said. The BORR will create a 27km free-flowing highway linking the Forrest and Bussell highways to allow for increased traffic in the region while allowing trucks carrying freight to bypass Bunbury. The southern section of the BORR received final environmental approval at a State level on May 31.