With the Western Sydney International airport (WSI) on the horizon, locals turned up to listen and be heard at a recent flight path information and feedback session in Springwood.
Create a free account to read this article
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The session, held at Blue Mountains Theatre and Community Hub on July 17, saw a room filled with diagrams, brochures, and computers for attendees to learn how they may be affected by the 24/7 international airport.
Members of the airport's project team manned the floor, fielding questions about the airport and helping attendees submit early feedback to the federal government.
Long-time Linden residents David and Josie Ford said they were concerned about possible noise from planes flying over their area.
"From Linden, we're just a bit aghast at the cynicism which has sent the flight paths over us simply because we're the least north-to-south dense area on the Mountains," Mr Ford told the Gazette.
Mr Ford said Deputy Mayor Romola Hollywood's description of the planes as "circling like bees" was a great quote, adding: "I thought 'yeah... we used to keep bees, [and] that's exactly what it looks like'."
The project opens to public consultation after the release of the draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) later this year.
Member for Macquarie Susan Templeman attended the Springwood event, and said she was grateful to see a steady flow of people speaking to Department of Infrastructure representatives.
"The difference between this sort of access to information and what we had back in 2015, when the initial proposal came up, is chalk and cheese," she said.
"There is no mad rush for people to give feedback, there's a long lead time and several months before we'll be required to formally respond. And I really want people to make the most of that opportunity."
Ms Templeman encouraged people to attend the coming events in other parts of the Mountains, so locals can keep asking questions and "get their heads around what this means".
The next Blue Mountains session is in Blaxland on Saturday July 29, from 11am-4pm, at Blaxland Community Centre, 33 Hope Street.
Another session will be held in Katoomba on Saturday August 19, from 11am-3pm, at Katoomba Leura Community Centre, 81-83 Katoomba Street.
Bookings are recommended as space is limited. Go to: https://www.wsiflightpaths.gov.au/community-events/.
To learn more about the flight paths visit: https://www.wsiflightpaths.gov.au/virtual-information-stall.
