Asa Wahlquist, Bays & Foreshores Convenor, Bulletin 5/2021  July 2021

Multiplex took control of the new Fishmarket site on Bridge Rd on the last day of May. The New Sydney Fish Markets Community Consultative Committee (CCC), at its second meeting, was told work would continue to remove the remaining 406 piles, after the installation of a new silt curtain to capture pollutants.

Blackwattle Bay in the 1970s (source: City of Sydney)

Test piles will then be installed. Valuable geotechnical information will be collected at this stage, and there will be fine tuning of the resulting noise and vibrations. This is covered by a Construction Noise and Vibration Management Plan, which can be found the Infrastructure NSW website.

Seawall revetment is also underway, that is basically replacing 80 to 90% of the existing seawall. In the process the seabed under the seawall will be cleaned up. So far they have found wharf structures and a sunken pontoon. An archaeological assessment, which was a condition of consent, has already been undertaken, and a close eye will be kept on any findings for historical or archaeological significance.

Senversa Environmental Consultants have taken baseline measurements on water quality in Blackwattle Bay, and will continue to monitor water quality. The Glebe Society intends to keep a close eye on the results.

Sydney Fish Market (https://www.infrastructure.nsw.gov.au/projects-nsw/blackwattle-bay/, October 2020)

The Committee asked about pathways for Indigenous workers in Multiplex. We were told the company has an Aboriginal Participation Plan, and several committee members provided the company with links with local Indigenous organisations.

There is no on-site parking for workers on the site, and the Glebe Society is particularly concerned about what this will mean for on-street parking in the community. Multiplex’s policy is to encourage workers to take public transport, a rather challenging suggestion given the only nearby public transport is the light rail.

Committee member Paul Elliott suggested they follow the lead of the film industry and rent an adequate-sized parking lot, and then bus workers to the site.

The Committee was also assured that trucks would not be permitted to marshall near the site. Concrete will come in by truck, despite there being a concrete works on the Blackwattle Bay waterfront, with a larger one planned for White Bay.

The purpose of the Committee is to hold the developers and Infrastructure NSW to account, to raise community concerns, and to insist the community be consulted and taken into consideration.

The Glebe Society was formally recognised as a stakeholder representative on the Committee, after being formerly rejected. I would like to thank John Faulkner, who is a Community Representative on the Committee as well as a Glebe Society member, for his belief that it was imperative that the Glebe Society should be a stakeholder member of the CCC, and his determined efforts to ensure the Glebe Society is now a full member.

The hours of work are 7 am to 5.30 pm, Monday to Friday, and 7.30 to 3.30 pm on Saturday. There will be no work on Sundays or public holidays.

Complaints can be made to: Blackwattle.Bay@infrastructure.nsw.gov.au