Carrington foreshore remediation

Thank you to the community and other stakeholders who attended the online interactive sessions in July 2020 and provided feedback on this project.

There was general support for the improvements to the Carrington foreshore area, and particularly for the construction of the floating pontoon at the end of the existing boat ramp at Throsby Creek. All of the issues raised were considered, and changes to the design were incorporated where feasible.

The project team has addressed the key issues raised in the following manner:

• The final design of the staircase is refined to ensure that it is not in a high traffic area, that it is level with the road, and built into the seawall.
• Sandstone blocks are included in the car park design to prevent cars parking on the grass.
• The boat ramp is designed for large triable vessels with approximately 300-400mm clearance and will have soft side. However, vessels should have their own fenders to protect against damage.
• The pontoon has been designed to extend to the first bridge pile only and is not considered a navigation hazard.
• The seawall is designed to use the end of the boat ramp as a control point to direct the water and minimise the risk of creating a wider beach. Slight narrowing may occur due to the hard edge of the seawall.

 Construction is due to start on 11 February 2021 and is expected to be complete by 23 March. Work on the foreshore revetment and the boat ramp will be undertaken together to cause as little disruption as possible.

The boat ramp will be closed for two separate periods between Thursday 18 February and Wednesday 3 March to allow the pilings and concrete abutment to be installed and then again for the installation of the pontoons. Signage at the site details the boat ramp closure periods.

 The public consultations and various planning considerations have informed the final design of the remediation, the sea wall and the boat ramp improvements. The final designs for both are shown below.

 

Foreshore remediation

The proposed work will construct a sandstone boulder sea wall revetment extending from the boat ramp north of the Cowper Street bridge towards the Newcastle Rowing Club.

Work will include:

• constructing a sandstone boulder sea wall along the foreshore to the height of the road
• constructing a stairway for beach access
• installing a new stormwater outlet

Boat ramp upgrade

The Carrington Boat Ramp will be upgraded with a floating pontoon that will extend from the existing boat ramp into Throsby Creek and will:

• improve on-water safety and ease congestion at the boat ramp
• improve boater access to the water
• make it easier for boaters to tie up vessels while launching vessels and retrieving trailers

The boat ramp will be closed for a period while the upgrade works occur. Alternative boat ramps in the area include, Stockton South and Stockton North. There will be a temporary loss of some car spaces during construction, but these will be restored upon completion of the work.

To minimise disruption to summer boating activities, work will start in February 2021,.

Work will take up to 8 weeks to complete, weather and sea conditions permitting. Construction hours will be from 7am to 6pm, Monday to Friday and from 8am to 1pm on Saturdays if required.

In 2016, the NSW Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) notified Crown Lands of community complaints about asbestos fragments at Carrington. As shared owners, Crown Lands and Roads and Maritime (now Transport for NSW (Maritime)), committed to address the matter.

We commissioned an independent Asbestos Management Plan which recommended construction of a sandstone wall as a long-term remediation strategy to “cap and contain” the contamination.

We held a community site visit in August 2019 with Crown Lands to discuss the remediation work, attended by more than 50 people. Based on community and stakeholder concerns about losing beach access to launch vessels, we have sourced monies from the Boating Now fund to construct a 17.5 metre floating pontoon. We are holding public information sessions on this plan in July 2020.

• January 2021 community update

  Carrington Foreshore Remediation and Boat Ramp Upgrade.

• July 2020 community update

  Carrington Foreshore Remediation and Boat Ramp Upgrade.

• Sea wall preliminary drawing

  Carrington boat ramp seawall rehabilitation.

• December 2017 asbestos mangement plan report

  Asbestos Management Plan for asbestos contaminated soil in the Carrington boat ramp foreshore area, Carrington NSW.