By Alesha Capone
Wyndham councillor Mia Shaw has encouraged residents to have their say on a pilot project which may lead to more quarry trucks using local roads.
The state government has selected Wyndham and the Shire of South Gippsland for inclusion in the Strategic Extractive Resource Areas (SERA) pilot project, which aims to trial new planning controls to help secure a long-term supply of sand and rock for future Victorian building projects.
The SERA proposes new planning scheme controls over existing quarry operations and on land where new quarrying operations could potentially be established.
The state government intends for Wyndham and South Gippsland to trial the newly developed planning controls for SERA before they are rolled out in other regions.
It is proposed the pilot project would be carried out on parts of Ballan Road, the Princes Freeway, Dohertys Road, Edgars Road, Argona Road, Greens Road, Bulban Road, Bacchus Marsh Werribee Road and Little River Road.
Cr Shaw said that, according to the SERA documents, primary markets for quarry materials extend across Greater Melbourne and Geelong, and also to projects such as the Cherry Creek Youth Justice Centre, WestGate Tunnel and Metro Tunnel.
Cr Shaw this could potentially mean more quarry trucks on Wyndham’s roads, as they are used to transport materials to construction sites across the state.
However, Cr Shaw said the state government has not yet committed to funding the duplication of Ballan Road, which would be needed if more trucks were to start travelling on it.
Cr Shaw also said the proposed SERA overlay buffer of 500 metres between quarrying operations and sensitive land uses, such as residential, might not be large enough.
The SERA documents say that quarry operators have identified “increasing road congestion as the key transport-related issue impacting their operations”.
Operators also identified residential estates as “encroaching on buffers and transport routes”, especially during blasting, and night time operating curfews as operating challenges.
Public consultation on the proposed SERA pilot is now open and will close on July 24.
Details: engage.vic.gov.au/sera-pilot-project or call Engage Victoria 136 186.
