The fast-track sealing works inside the eastern bund wall at Fisherman’s Landing reclamation area have been completed ahead of schedule.
The Transitional Environmental Program (TEP) was approved on 25th June to allow for works to be undertaken up to the 6th August, however the works were surveyed and deemed a success on August 4; two days ahead of schedule.
Two cutter suction dredges were in operation full time on the TEP to place approximately 1.5 million cubic metres of dredge material inside the reclamation area. The dredge material was pumped in using sinkerlines and placed using bulldozers and excavators to create a 50 metre wide layer to seal the full length of the eastern bund wall.
Preliminary surveys to determine the effectiveness of the seal on the bund showed the eastern wall as fully sealed. These surveys were then repeated on the Spring Tide to verify the results.
In addition to the conditions on the project to report to the regulators on turbidity daily, a light monitoring trial was put in place to observe the levels of light reaching seagrass meadows. Light levels (shown as green dots) have remained above the required 6 mols (shown in blue) average at the inner harbour seabed site for the entire duration of the TEP as shown in the graphs below:
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Dredging Today Staff, August 8, 2012; Images: westernbasinportdevelopment