The Hon Warren Truss MP: Geotechnical analysis starts at Badgerys Creek
20-Jan-2015 Geotechnical analysis of the northern parts of Commonwealth-owned land at Badgerys Creek commenced today.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development Warren Truss said the geotechnical drilling is a crucial step in planning for the proposed Western Sydney airport.
"A team of engineers will be at Badgerys Creek to profile the subsoil and rock at several locations over the next week," Mr Truss said.
"A drilling rig will drill several boreholes to a depth of 20 metres, and pits up to five metres deep will be dug by an excavator. The samples will be analysed over the coming weeks.
"This is part of the critical planning work to develop detailed construction plans and cost estimates for the first stage of a Western Sydney airport, which will be among the nation's most impressive and exciting civil engineering projects over the next decade.
"At the end of last year the Government commenced its new environmental assessment, which we aim to have concluded by the end of this year."
In April last year the Australian Government ended decades of uncertainty with a decision that Badgerys Creek would be the site of an airport for Western Sydney. Work is underway to develop a commercial proposal for an airport which is expected to operate from the mid-2020s.
An airport for Western Sydney will be a major boost for the local economy and create thousands of jobs during construction and a pipeline of jobs once the airport starts operating.