Proposed flight paths for Western Sydney airport ‘manifestly unfair’, councils say

Councils in New South Wales say residents will face increased noise and planning restrictions when Western Sydney International airport is operational.

Unlike Sydney’s Kingsford Smith Airport, which has a curfew from 11pm to 6am, there will be no curfew at the Badgerys Creek “Aerotropolis”.

In a submission to the airspace and flight path design committee, Wollondilly Shire Council argues there will be a diminishment in “the quality of life for people in the shire in a number of ways”.

Mayor Matt Gould said it was “manifestly unfair” that residents of Western Sydney and surrounds were being treated differently to those in the inner city and the eastern suburbs.

“The two airports should have the same curfew scheme, whatever that looks like,” he said.

“Wollondilly residents, particularly in the north of our shire, are going to be copping the majority of these night-time flights because there is no curfew in place.

No granny flats?

A map of the proposed flight paths shows the projected noise levels when the airport reaches 37 million passengers per year by 2055.

The map indicates the impact zone for noise levels of 60 decibels inside a dwelling will stretch as far south as Theresa Park, almost as far south as Picton.

In late 2020, the state government introduced a new Western Sydney Aerotropolis state environmental planning policy (WSA SEPP) that banned secondary dwellings in some of Wollondilly’s northern villages.

The policy aimed to “prevent the intensification of noise-sensitive development in areas most affected by aircraft noise”.

“The land-use restrictions have been put in place on the basis that the noise impacts would be so significant that [residents] can’t have any more built dwellings, or even a granny flat,” Cr Gould said.

“If that is the justification for those land-use restrictions, then any resident that has a property there should be covered by the noise insulation scheme.”

Independent Wollondilly MP Judy Hannan has raised the issue in state parliament and received a commitment from Planning Minister Paul Scully in late November.

“If there is a restriction that should go because the flight paths have been made clear and it is no longer necessary, then we will look to remove that as quickly as we can,” Mr Scully told parliament.

Water and social concerns

Wollondilly council has also raised concerns about the airport’s impact on the Warragamba Dam and catchment area.

“The [environmental impact statement — EIS] as it stands at the moment does not examine that in any great detail,” Cr Gould said.

The study found there was a low risk of impact on the area from airport operations.

“It makes an assumption that the dam would be completely full at the time and there is actually no justification at all as to how they come up with the fact,” Cr Gould said.

In a submission to the federal government, the City of Canterbury Bankstown criticised the draft EIS for failing to adequately consider or mitigate the impacts fo the proposed flight paths.

The council said the changes to the east-west runway at Sydney Airport would concentrate flights over Campsie, Belfield, Clemton Park, Belmore, and to the north of Lakemba, Greenacre and Chullora.

It said changes to the north-south runway would funnel more aircraft north of Croydon Park, Ashbury and Hurlstone Park.

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The council warned the changes may worsen social inequality, as most of the suburbs negatively affected were among Australia’s poorest.

“It stands to reason that these suburbs could also be further socio-economically disadvantaged as a result of new or concentrated aircraft noise related disturbances,” the council wrote in a submission.

The federal government is beginning the process of reviewing the submissions.

In a statement, a spokeswoman for the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government Catherine King said the government recognised the proposal would expose communities to additional noise.

The statement said considerable efforts had been made to avoid residential areas and that the department was working through more than 8,000 submissions made in response to the flight path plan.