Inland Rail reduces construction impact zone

INLAND Rail has reduced the construction impact zone on its Narrabri to North Star Phase 1 works by almost 50%, according to its latest sustainability report.

Inland Rail said its fourth Annual Sustainability Report, for the 2021/22 financial year, articulates the project’s actions to promote a sustainable future.

It said the construction zone on the Narrabri to North Star project was reduced from an initial estimate of 2426 hectares to 1230 hectares.

Inland Rail interim chief executive Rebecca Pickering said Inland Rail aims to keep sustainability at the forefront of its work.

“From the outset, we’ve aspired to surpass legislative requirements by forging a reputation as an industry leader in sustainability,” Ms Pickering said.

“We know that sustainability is about much more than the environment and resource use which is why revitalising local economies through sustainable jobs and investment in new industries remains a key priority for the Inland Rail team and our contractors.

“While Inland Rail’s Leadership Team is responsible for leading our culture of sustainability, we know that success is dependent on the ongoing empowerment of the entire workforce to create and foster that culture of sustainability awareness and action within their own teams.”

Inland Rail said the objectives and targets in its sustainability strategy provide the framework for reporting its annual progress.

The targets are reviewed annually in response to evolving considerations like changing community expectations and new industry benchmarks.

“In line with our goals, Inland Rail is well on the way to achieving a program-wide ‘excellent’ Infrastructure Sustainability (IS) rating, a rating already achieved by the Parkes to Narromine project (as built), and the Narrabri to North Star Phase 1 project (design),” Inland Rail said.

“These IS ratings provide respected third-party assurance that our sustainability claims are genuine and that we’re delivering sustainable rail infrastructure which has very real and positive benefits for the communities in which we work.”