Ports North said in their latest announcement that they have welcomed the Commonwealth Government environmental approval for the Cairns Shipping Development Project.
Commenting the news, Ports North Chairman Russell Beer said: “This is a major milestone in the approval process and underlines the confidence Federal Government has in our environmental management credentials.”
“Ports North is continuing to work with both State and Local Governments to finalize other relevant approvals while advancing the Project. Tender processes for a dredging contract and wharf design are currently underway, ” Mr Beer added.
According to their official release, Ports North plans to undertake construction and dredging work in 2019.
Leichhardt MP Warren Entsch said earlier this week that the dredging project, once underway, should take no longer than 12 weeks to complete and visual impacts will be minimal.
As Dredging Today reported Thursday, the job-creating Cairns Shipping Development Project has been given the green light after the federal government signed off on the environmental impact statement.
The federal government was forced to delay making a final decision on the EIS for several months at the request of the Queensland Labor Government.