The remediation of the former BHP land in Kooragang Island has been completed.
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00:00This site is one of the earliest industrial uses in NSW and with investment and careful
00:18management this legacy is set to continue.
00:22Ultimately repurposing the land would protect the environment and stimulate the economy
00:27through creating new and diverse industry, fostering innovation and clean energy and
00:31creating local jobs.
00:34As part of the 99 year long term lease of the Port of Newcastle the state entered into
00:40an agreement with the Port of Newcastle operator to remediate the land before handing back
00:45the site.
00:47The state contracted HCCDC to remediate the land on its behalf and Treasurer has been
00:52working with HCCDC to provide assistance and oversight on the remediation works.
01:01The objective of the project primarily was always to remediate the contaminants that
01:06were on the site as a result of its heavy former use as a steelworks site.
01:11The project was set in motion when BHP decided to exit these properties in Newcastle and
01:16close the steelworks.
01:18We had a landfill which was unclosed and unfinished in a very environmentally sensitive
01:23area and a very important legacy industrial site which needed to be repaired and cleaned
01:28up and made safe before it could be reused.
01:33What is below a steelworks site is almost as incredible of that which is you would see
01:38above it.
01:39There's a labyrinth of services and tunnels and concrete and steel and we had to navigate
01:46through the demolition of all those structures.
01:49As we continued through the works we made sure that we were always incorporating new
01:53innovative ways of creating the outcome that we wanted.
01:58The difficulty and the biggest challenge for this site was addressing groundwater.
02:01It involved the construction of the deepest underground barrier wall in the world.
02:05It's 50 metres below ground and it's over 1.4 kilometres long.
02:13This is the most significant project that I have worked on.
02:17There was lots of times when we were making decisions which were all focused on how do
02:21we make sure that this site can be reused for the future in ways that we didn't need
02:26to undo or redo work that we were doing.
02:29It is part of the Hunter National Park.
02:32The overall project has been and will be a great environmental benefit to the state and
02:37to the Newcastle region.
02:39Some of the measures that we've taken is putting protective measures in place for endangered
02:43species like the green and golden bellfrogs.
02:46One year we had very successful breeding occur in one of the constructed wetlands that we
02:53recently finished.
02:54Juvenile bellfrogs were overwhelming our construction site and we literally had to stop work whilst
02:59we let these bellfrogs pass and continue on their migration effectively.
03:05We've actually brought on board the University of Newcastle to act as our research partners.
03:10We've had a system of research, monitoring and feedback through various stages to further
03:16refine, improve and also inform our strategy.
03:19Port of Newcastle has been working collaboratively with HCCDC and the New South Wales State Treasury
03:25to work through the remediation process and carry out the handover of the sites at Mayfield
03:29and Kioweth.
03:30This site here at Kioweth is approximately 220 hectares of what used to be a landfill
03:35and wasteland and we're hoping to turn that into the new clean energy precinct.
03:39Port of Newcastle is looking to generate approximately 5,800 jobs and will support
03:45the region's economy through expanded educational pathways and we will be supporting all clean
03:50energy projects.
03:51In the future the land will continue to be used for strategic port side uses.
03:56At the moment the Mayfield site is already being used for things such as fuel terminals
04:01and importing cargo.
04:04We have such a great working relationship with HCCDC and they've been very collaborative
04:09at every stage.
04:10All the technicians and consultants that we've spoken and engaged with have great technical
04:15experience, they're great environmental managers and it's been a great benefit to the state.
04:20One of the things that I'm most proud of in relation to this project is that we got there.
04:25We achieved what we set out to do and we did it in a way that really relied on the local
04:31workforce of Newcastle.
04:33The great breadth of talent and people, engineers and workforce that combine to produce these
04:38results have been acknowledged in various awards, which includes the Institute of Engineers
04:44Environmental Engineering Excellence Awards for the Barrier Wall and also was awarded
04:49the Premier's Award.
04:51New South Wales Treasury has been an important partner.
04:54We've had a very constructive relationship with the Environmental Protection Agency,
04:59Port of Newcastle and the community as well, like we've been supported along the way through
05:03community consultations and engagement with the community.
05:08The team at HCCDC, led by Mike, have actually been really wonderful to work with.
05:11They've been so generous with their time and experience, it's been really smooth to work
05:15with and it's just been a really positive working experience.
05:18I think there's a sense of satisfaction that comes from seeing it finished.
05:23You can't help but feel a bit excited about what the future holds for Newcastle.
05:28Being a piece of the history of an industry that was such an important piece of many families
05:35in Newcastle has been really satisfying because it wasn't just the closure of the steelworks
05:40site, it was the beginning of what comes next.