Roads & Transport Projects
The following projects demonstrate the scope of BL&A services and the depth of experience of our personnel. These projects have been undertaken since 2001. The company has particularly strong experience with development projects associated with significant controversy by providing sound scientific foundations for impact assessment and regulator assessment. Virtually all projects have involved vegetation and/or fauna habitat assessment and mapping.
Examples of Roads & Transport Projects include:
BL&A has extensive experience in providing assistance to transport infrastructure projects often for VicRoads or Councils. These include:
- Westernport Highway duplication project: Undertook flora and fauna assessments and targeted field surveys on a four km stretch of the highway between Cranbourne-Frankston and North Roads. This involved a net gain assessment including using the habitat hectare methodology developed and implemented by DSE to score the native vegetation in the areas affected. Mapping of habitat zones and large trees was provided. The work also included detailed targeted threatened fauna surveys to determine possible significant effects on regional populations of threatened species.
- BL&A has undertaken a range of Road Planning Studies for VicRoads, NSW RTA and Local Councils, including:
- Calder Highway, Faraday to Ravenswood;
- Nagambie ByPass;
- Pyalong ByPass;
- Outer Metropolitan Ring Road;
- River Murray Crossing at Swan Hill; and
- River Murray Crossing at Echuca.
- Road widening projects for VicRoads:
Investigations designed to provide information on the extent
and condition of native vegetation within a study area and to
identify the potential impacts on flora and fauna of the proposed
road widening or duplication. Such studies emphasize the definition
of Ecological Vegetation Classes (EVCs) present and conservation
status and general condition of the vegetation, including major
weed species/invasion area or other degrading factors. Fauna
habitats present and the potential for vegetation to provide
habitat for threatened species or act as
a wildlife corridor was identified. Potential impacts of
the proposed works on ecological values and on regional biodiversity,
ecosystem biodiversity and (where assessable) genetic diversity,
were documented.
These studies also investigate opportunities to avoid or mitigate potential impacts through design or management, assessment of indirect impacts on areas that abut the study area, and assessment of the likely resultant level of impacts if mitigation measures are adopted, including implications of the Project arising from State and Commonwealth environmental or biodiversity legislation or policy. Such studies included:
- Berwick–Cranbourne Road (Grices to Thompson Roads);
- Berwick–Cranbourne Road (Grices to Hardy’s Roads);
- Narre Warren–Cranbourne Road (Centre to Pound Roads);
- Cranbourne–Frankston Road (Kelvin Grove and Lyppards Roads intersection);
- South Road extension (Heatherton and Westall Road intersection);
- Geelong Ring Road construction-section 4 (Extending from immediately north of the intersection of Pigdons Road and the Princes Highway to the intersection of Hams Road and Anglesea Road in the south); and
- Ferntree Gully Road (widening) Offset Plan.
- Targeted threatened fauna investigations for road construction projects to determine any significant effect on the regional or overall population of the threatened species arising from the construction of new roads or upgrading of existing roads. Examples of such projects include:
- Lang Lang Bypass (Southern Brown Bandicoot and Growling Grass Frog);
- Ferntree Gully Road (Growling Grass Frog surveys);
- Geelong Bypass, Geelong (VicRoads): Conducted a detailed flora and fauna assessment of Section Two of the proposed Geelong Bypass. The assessment identified potential constraints the flora and fauna values of the study area may pose for the proposed alignment and developed specific mitigation measures to minimise impacts;
- Pakenham Bypass, Pakenham (VicRoads): Reviewed information on significant species and vegetation community at the crossing point of the Pakenham Bypass and the Gippsland Railway. Developed, designed, costed and evaluated options to mitigate impacts on significant vegetation within the railway reservation. Options developed included relocation of significant species, design modifications to the structures to allow the vegetation to remain beneath and moving the road to avoid the vegetation; and
- East Bendigo Linking Road (City of Greater Bendigo): Assessment of the ecological implications of several route options of the proposed East Bendigo Linking Road and determination of preferred route from a flora and fauna perspective.
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