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i s s u e o n e • 2 0 0 2
at work around
Asia Pacific
contents
Welcome to this first edition of our Asia
Pacific newsletter that showcases a sample of
the exciting projects that we are involved
within the region.
Sustainable solutions 1
For a company such as URS, which is so well
Corporate Sustainable Solutions 1 known in the environmental and engineering
fields, you might find it interesting that the
Expert input helps shape plan to bring 2 first articles in this newsletter are about
crucial boost to New Zealand region sustainability. However, increasingly we are
finding that our clients are looking at their
Consultants appointed for new rail 2 business performance from financial, environ-
transit lines for Singapore
mental and social criteria. The projects we
work on are being examined in the same way.
New premises in Hobart 2
We are therefore using our skills to ensure
Philippines roads improvement 2 that we provide the assistance our clients
require to develop projects that are financially
West Gate Bridge, Melbourne 3 sound, whilst being carried out to a high
environmental level and with full involvement
Governor of Victoria Export Award 4 of the community and all other stakeholders. We have also focussed our
own internal resources in a group called Corporate Sustainable
Sustainable tourism 4
Resources to provide added-value strategic advice about sustainability at
Due diligence work in India 4
the most senior levels of our client organisations.
I am sure that you will be intrigued with some of the other aspects of URS
Hydrogeological study for waste disposal 5 business in the region as you read through this newsletter. Whilst I would
rather you read every article in this newsletter, there are a few specific
Proposed Nyato Palm Oil Mill, Indonesia 5
articles that I would specifically like to bring to your attention.
Sustainable forest management 5 Did you know that the strengthening of the West Gate Bridge in Melbourne
was carried out using Fibre Reinforced Polymers (FRP)? It is currently the
Triple bottom line performance 6 largest bridge in the world to be strengthened using FRP. The design of
that strengthening was done by URS.
Enhancement of Geraldton Port 6
Our forestry work around the region might not be widely known, but it is
Plantation development, Lao PDR 7 an important, and growing part of our business. In this newsletter you will
find articles on sustainable forest management in the tropics, plantation
URS acceletates gas to liquids 7 development and information about our forestry publishing team and their
publications.
Innovative design approach upgrades safety of 8
Australian dam The world-class study carried out on protecting the undeveloped areas at
Subic Bay in the Philippines has been another extremely interesting
Japan or China – the future pulpwood dominator? 9 project. Even though Subic Bay had major developments due to the
infrastructure associated with the US Navy base, there was significant
URS New Zealand leads on of the country’s 9
undeveloped land in the area. The aim of the project was to develop a
largest transportation projects
Management Plan for the protected areas. The global resources of URS
Subic Bay, Philippines 10 were used on this project, with staff from the US, Australia, UK and of
course the Philippines being involved. This is a project that I have always
Renewable energy 11 been personally fascinated by, I trust you will also find it of considerable
interest.
Status of a critical resource, the groundwater 12
of the Murray-Darling Basin area Other environmental parts of our business that are highlighted in this
newsletter also include the registration of URS with Green Globe as an
Integrated catchment management in the 12 “Approved Environmental Management Organisation”. Green Globe is the
Murray-Darling Basin international certification body for sustainable tourism. You may also be
interested in how we were able expedite the environmental approval
Environmental management audit for wineries 13 processes for a client in Western Australia, our work on renewable energy,
and distilleries in South Australia the range of work we are doing on catchment management, particularly in
the Murray-Darling Basin, and our environmental auditing work of the 63
Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, China 14
licenced wineries in South Australia.
Major engineering projects that we have recently finished or are currently
involved in, such as, the Eastern Region Line in Singapore, the automated
people mover for the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport (work carried out by our
Melbourne office), the enhancement of Geraldton Port, the innovative
design approach on the Lake Eppalock dam in Victoria and the major
transportation work in Auckland (State Highway 20). These have been
Cover photo: Docklands Development Project, Melbourne, Australia extremely interesting projects for us to be involved with, and I hope as you
Pictured at the Gasworks remediation site from left to right, Jacinta
read about them you understand some of the enthusiasm that we felt for
Gorman, Biochemist and Bianca Blaha, Superintendent these projects.
Representative.
Thank you for taking the time to read this message. I trust you will find
URS has been involved with Dockands Development Project from
the articles in this newsletter of interest to you. Please do not hesitate to
the start with soil and groundwater investigations, geotechnical
investigations, risk management, through to ongoing project follow-up with any of the URS staff involved.
management, clean up supervision and environmental auditing.The
redevelopment of the Docklands area into residential, office, retail
and business/technology precincts covers 220 hectares of land and
water adjacent to the Melbourne Central Business District. A
Merv Jones
chequered history of dumping activities and several industries Managing Director, Asia Pacific
including a gas works, had impacted upon the environmental
condition of the land and groundwater. Uncontrolled filling and deep
areas of the notorious “Coode Island Silt” have worsened the
geotechnical condition of much of the area. With remediation of
much of Docklands now completed or underway, the development
potential of a site so close to the CBD and on Victoria Harbour is
rapidly being realised.
“At work around Asia Pacific” is printed on Onyx, 100% recycled
paper made in Australia.
Sustainable Solutions
Sustainability
solution
Whilst sustainability is a current “buzz word”, the term still presents the company’s dynamics, a commitment to sustainability and a
some perplexity to many people. “What does it mean?” and “what degree of forward planning. Many companies are developing
are the ramifications for my business?” are two common questions sustainability performance indicators, enhancing their corporate
should be looked that are not easily answered. This lack of clarity has been part of the governance programs, publicly reporting their performance towards
reason that progress towards sustainability has been so slow in the sustainability, and working towards integrated management
upon more as a past 10 years. What has changed in recent times is that systems.
organisations have realised that they can, and need, to define what
The development of consistent per formance indicators is a
journey, rather than sustainability means for them. In particular, they have realised that
fundamental component of measuring progress towards
they can have control over the time frame in which that agenda can
sustainability. Many environmental performance indicators are well
a destination. be implemented and the level of commitment that is consistent with
developed, including management system implementation,
their business needs. In addition, the concept has gained
greenhouse gas emissions, incident repor ting, waste, water
The fundamental substantial credibility, particularly from European initiatives and
consumption, land management and various air emissions. Social
those of organisations such as the World Business Council for
performance indicators are less well developed, but include working
challenge that lies Sustainable Development. Sustainability will gain even more
hours and wages, employee age, financial donations, indigenous or
impetus from the Rio +10 conference to be held this year in
minority employment, gender diversity, security, staff turnover and
ahead for business Johannesburg. An inevitable consequence of doing business in the
investment in community development.
immediate future will therefore be that the sustainability agenda will
need to be understood and managed. Fortunately, there are many Most companies already have corporate governance programs in
is to acknowledge companies who want to act responsibly, and also want to realise the place to control and minimise business risk. Many of these
opportunities that will arise from this. programs include some consideration of environmental risk,
that the although they are rarely well quantified. Ver y few corporate
The focus on environmental and social accountability has both
governance programs evaluate social risk.
environmental and internal and external drivers. Some companies with visionary
leadership are embracing the sustainability agenda as the only way The production of public environment reports is well established,
social performance for long term survival in the 21st century. External drivers include however the public reporting of sustainability performance is a
community groups, traditional landowners and non-government relatively new phenomenon. In recent years the once separate
of a company is organisations (NGOs). Investors are also now seeking to know more environment, health and safety and community public reports have
of a company’s environmental and social performance, whereas evolved to become consolidated reports, with less distinction
between each area. Often though, in these consolidated reports,
as critical as previously a decision to commit funds was based solely on economic
environmental information still dominates. The challenge remains to
performance. What a company stands for is rapidly becoming as
important as what a company produces or provides. Corporate social develop fully integrated sustainability reports.
its financial responsibility and corporate governance are becoming as important As with the production of public reports, companies all too often
components of a company’s vision and values as profitability and
performance. market growth. Ethical investment and the establishment of ethical
consider the environmental, social and economic aspects of their
operations separately. As a result, companies have multiple
investment funds are now increasing at a rapid rate, with many management systems to address these aspects. A significant
financial institutions now offering customers the option to invest advancement towards sustainability will be the development of
their funds only with companies that exhibit sound social, integrated or sustainability management systems.
environmental and economic performance.
How are companies progressing towards sustainability? The For further reading visit: www.urs.com.au/sustainabilityreporting
approach adopted is dependent upon a number of aspects including
Corporate Sustainable Solutions
Corporate Sustainable Solutions is a team within the global Geoff Byrne, Senior Principal, is the
operations of URS committed to delivering value added strategic national co-ordinator for the Asia Pacific
advice services to senior levels within our client organisations. In network of the Corporate Sustainable
particular, the focus of the group is to assist clients to progress their Solutions team. He has over 25 years
sustainability objectives. Now more than ever, there is an experience, covering the fields of
expectation on companies to ‘do the right thing’ by society and the environmental management, corporate
natural environment in which they operate. Corporate Sustainable repor ting; systems and per formance
Solutions recognises that businesses must strive to meet and auditing; geology and engineering; and
sometimes exceed these expectations, while at the same time contaminated land management. Geoff
meeting the needs of shareholders and other financial stakeholders. works at the forefront of sustainability
Increasingly, companies are also recognising that this approach is reporting and has authored several papers on this topic. He has
also good for business. worked on major projects throughout Australia, Asia and the
Pacific in the mining, manufacturing and resource development
We deliver strategies aimed at ensuring organisations maintain their
sectors.
“licence to operate” within the new sustainability agenda that now
encompasses a much broader group of stakeholders. Corporate
For further information please contact Geoff Byrne, Senior
Sustainable Solutions already has an established track record in
Principal, email: geoff_byrne@urscorp.com and he will put you in
delivering sustainability advice services and is able to assist clients
contact with a suitable team member in your location.
meet this challenge.
1
Expert input helps shape Consultants appointed
plan to bring crucial boost
to New Zealand region for New Rail Transit Lines for Singapore
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) of Singapore has appointed an international consortium of trans-
A comprehensive plan that could provide up to 4,000 new jobs
portation consultants to undertake the study of the proposed Eastern Region Line (ERL). The consultant
and generate NZ$600 million in economic benefits annually for a
team, Binnie Black Veatch (SEA) Pte Ltd in association with URS Consulting (Singapore) Pte Ltd, with
drought wary region of New Zealand is taking shape with the
Booz·Allen & Hamilton (BBV/URS/BAH) will undertake the feasibility and preliminary engineering study of
expertise of URS scientists and engineers.
the ERL. The value of the contract awarded is S$2.3 million.
The Central Plains region of Canterbury in the South Island is
The Eastern Region Line (ERL) has been identified as a strategic line in the Rail Transit System (RTS)
home to a diverse range of communities with agricultural and
Master Plan to complement the East West Line and serve the eastern region of Singapore. It aims to
horticultural enterprises at their heart. Crucial to their survival
maximise the accessibility for both intra and inter town travel for the eastern region in areas currently
and expansion is a secure and plentiful water supply – an issue
being supported only by the public bus network and to serve residential areas in the east which are not
impacted by environmental factors including traditional long dry
served by the existing MRT system. The proposed line would not only benefit the users of the system, but
seasons.
also serve the economic interests of the nation by increasing rail accessibility to areas.
In March 2000, two local authorities in the area, the Selwyn
URS staff form key elements of the study team. Steven Hawkins (URS Auckland) and Cliff Allen (URS
District Council and Christchurch City Council, set up a Central
Melbourne) are the Project Manager and Deputy Project Manager, respectively. Bill Anderson (URS Sydney)
Plains Water Enhancement Steering Committee to look at ways to
is the Engineering Team Leader and Stephen Drummond (Manager of URS’s Singapore office) is the
improve security and boost the prosperity of the Central
Geotechnical Team Leader. Steve Drummond says that “the combined skills of URS, BBV and BAH come
Canterbury region through water management schemes, while at
together to form a strong team to complete such a comprehensive study. Each organisation brings a
the same time providing environmental and social benefits.
strong track record of experience. For example, URS has been providing geotechnical consulting services
URS New Zealand was commissioned to investigate the need for in Singapore since 1963 through its former entity, Dames & Moore, and has a large library of geotechnical
and the feasibility of a community-based irrigation and water data and a comprehensive knowledge of ground conditions in the study area. Our past project experience
enhancement scheme on a 200,000 ha study area between the includes all of the geotechnical site investigation work for the Singapore government authority that
Waimakariri and Rakaia Rivers. constructed the original east/west and north/south MRT lines across the island of Singapore in the
1980s.”
A team of engineers, planners and environmental scientists from
URS’ Christchurch office has been involved and continues to BBV/URS/BAH has commenced initial work on the study, which is scheduled to be completed by the third
advise on a comprehensive range of options and considerations quarter of 2002.
including technical, economic, social, cultural and environmental
issues. For further information please contact Stephen Drummond or John Gillett.
Email: stephen_drummond@urscorp.com • john_gillett@urscorp.com
Following an initial report on options, the team headed by the
URS Christchurch Manager and recognised Environmental
Engineer, Cliff Tipler, has just completed a Stage II Feasibility
Study which explores in greater depth the preferred base scheme
concept. This focuses on irrigating 84,000 ha of the Canterbury
Plains by capturing and harvesting a small fraction of water from
the Waimakariri and Rakaia Rivers during the winter.
A unique offering in Tasmania, Australia
The proposed project would include: The URS Forestry market intelligence publishing team has moved
into new premises in the centrally located Salamanca area of
– A dam and storage reservoir to hold up to 290 million cubic Hobart. There is a permanent staff of four including Robert
metres of water in the foothills of the Canterbury Plains. Eastment (Manager), Tim Tillack (Project Officer), Jason Corbett
– Intakes with fish screens and sediment control on both rivers. (Research Assistant/Accounts) and Brian Stafford (Associate
– Pump stations. Director). The team has skills covering all publishing and consulting
– Feeder, discharge and headrace canals. matters including writing, research, analysis, proof reading, editing,
and desktop publishing. Ever y two months they publish an
intelligence report on the Pulp, Paper and Forest Products Industry,
The cost of construction has been estimated at and they produce an annual Yearbook.
about NZ$235M.
In its report presented to the Steering Committee and the joint For further information contact Robert Eastment.
Councils in February 2002, URS New Zealand concluded that a Email: robert_eastment@urscorp.com or visit www.ursforestry.com
water enhancement scheme for the Central Plains can technically
be built, is affordable and although it will have some effects,
such as environmental, these can be mitigated. The report has
recommended that the investigations continue with a view to
seeking the necessary resource consents for the project.
Consents are expected to be lodged in mid 2003. National Roads Improvement and
Cliff Tipler says the project has been challenging and extremely
comprehensive. The wider community has been involved at all Management Project
stages of the project, with farmers, rural community members
and environmental groups working together to find common
URS Philippines has undertaken an interesting project with the Department of Public Works and Highways
solutions. He says that working on a project with the potential to
(DPWH) which involves the Strengthening of Environmental, Socio-Economic and Land Acquisition
create so many benefits to the community has been particularly
Capabilities related to the institutional capacity–building component of the National Roads Improvement
satisfying.
and Management Project (NRIMP) Phase I.
For further information please contact Cliff Tipler, Senior
There are four major components to the project, namely Environmental, Socio-Economic, Land Acquisition
Environmental Engineer, Christchurch Manager and URS New
Zealand Principal. Email: cliff_tipler@urscorp.com
and Key Performance Indicators. The Environmental Component involves the preparation of deliverables
such as the Environmental Strategic Plan and Programs (ESPP), proposed organisation of the DPWH EIA
Office, formulation of the Environmental Management System (EMS), review of EIAs prepared by DPWH,
and the formulation of a communication program for EIA. The Socio-economic Component involves the
formulation of appropriate policies regarding Resettlement Planning and assistance in the training and
manualisation of procedures for resettlement action planning. The Land Acquisition Component also
involves streamlining of land acquisition procedures and computerising the application process. The Key
Performance Indicators (KPI) Component involves the establishment of appropriate benchmarks and
targets to measure performance of the agency in environmental, social and land acquisition aspects.
The main objectives of the URS team are to enhance the skills and capabilities of DPWH staff and to
integrate environmental and social concerns in all the operations of the DPWH and throughout all stages
of the project cycle. It is critical that the environmental and social awareness of both internal and external
stakeholders is improved . The team will ensure that road projects have received environmental clearance
and that required road rights-of-way have been acquired at least one month prior to construction
commencement.
For further information please contact Celestino Ulepi, Project Manager.
Email: celestino_ulepi@urscorp.com
2
westgate bridge, melbourne
URS has recently completed the design of strengthening works for the West Gate Bridge concrete
approach spans near Melbourne, Australia. These strengthening works are currently under construction. West Gate Bridge
Most of the strengthening works are using Fibre Reinforce Polymers (FRP) which are very high strength
fibres applied to the concrete surface using epoxy adhesive. These fibres are applied as either laminated
strips or prefabricated sheets.
Approach Span
This is currently the largest bridge in the world to be strengthened using FRP and has used the most FRP FRP Strengthening
of any bridge strengthening project. FRP is becoming increasingly popular for application in strengthening
aging infrastructure throughout the world. M E L B O U R N E , A U S T R A L I A
The West Gate Bridge opened to traffic in 1978 linking Melbourne to the western industrial and residential
areas. The western approach spans to this bridge are receiving a new lease of life. The construction of
additional approach lanes to this bridge has lead to a requirement to place an additional traffic lane within
the existing bridge. As the West Gate Bridge was not designed for more than 8 lanes of traffic, a design
check was carried out comparing design loads against current legal vehicle loads. It was found that to
avoid over stressing of the western approach spans, the bridge needed to be strengthened to cater for
the additional lane of traffic.
The structure to be strengthened comprises the west concrete approach viaduct that abuts the main steel
spans of the West Gate Bridge. The structure comprises a 650 m long continuous curved multi span
precast concrete box girder with a large, 23 m long, concrete box shaped anchor abutment at the western
end.
URS undertook a structural assessment of the West Gate Bridge concrete approach spans on behalf of
VicRoads. The bridge is a complex precast segmental box girder, with precast post-tensioned cantilever
frames with a composite reinforced concrete deck slab.
This assessment determined that the bridge had insufficient capacity for;
– Global hog of the box girder over piers
Key Facts
– Combined shear and torsion near the piers
– Local sag movements in the deck slab Bridge Span: 67 m
– Local bending capacity in the cantilever frame Width: 35.6 m
Clearly the design of the FRP represented a challenge for the team, particularly as there is no code, or
even guideline, for FRP associated with the Australian Austroads Bridges Design Code. After researching Bridge Type: Precast segmental concrete box
the current world wide state of knowledge on FRP the British Guideline “TR55” was adopted. This girder with cantilever frames and composite
guideline “Design guidance for strengthening concrete structures using fibre composite materials” is a deck slab.
practical document, useful in both FRP design and application, however, it is designed to be read in
association with British Bridge codes, not Austroads. Therefore significant additional effort was FRP: Predominantly 120 mm x 1.4 mm BBR
necessary to “Australianise” this guideline. CFL 165 FRP Laminate
For further information please contact Bob Meggs, Senior Design Engineer. Length of FRP: Approx. 25 km
Email: bob_meggs@urscorp.com
Client: VicRoads North West Metro
Design: URS Australia Pty Ltd
Specialist FRP Design Advice:
BOW Ingenieure, Germany
Contractor: Abigroup Contractors Pty Ltd
and Savcor
Scheduled Completion: April 2002
Cost: $A8.6 million. 3
export award
URS Australia wins URS and Sustainable Tourism
award for off-shore work
on U.S. people mover How Green Globe certification can benefit
URS Australia has been awarded the 2001 Governor of
your organisation or project
Victoria’s Export Award in the Services Category for its work
on a new automated people mover (APM) at the Dallas-Fort URS is working with Green Globe to facilitate the development of a more sustainable
Worth Airport in the U.S. The award was presented at a high- tourism industry across Asia Pacific.
profile event attended by the Governor of Victoria as well as
Green Globe is the international certification body for sustainable tourism products and
Government Ministers and Parliamentarians. The award
has recently commenced operations in Asia Pacific. Green Globe offers recognition to
honors businesses in the State of Victoria that successfully
sustainable tourism operators by allowing the use of the Green Globe logo.
export products or services outside the country.
Cathlin Collins and Noel Corkery from our Sydney Office recently completed training in the Green Globe
The award recognises the high quality of the work performed
benchmarking and certification system and are now qualified to help tourism operators across Asia Pacific
by a Melbourne-based URS team of 15 engineers and
improve their environmental performance and implement the Green Globe Standard, which is similar to
draftspersons, who worked with colleagues in the U.S. to
ISO 14001 - Environmental Management Systems.
provide engineering design and documentation services for
the project. Operating from Melbourne, the team helped to URS has also been successfully registered with Green Globe as an ‘Approved Environmental Management
design a portion of the support structure for the APM based Organisation’, with the support services and capabilities to help companies who have joined or are
on design documentation and a brief supplied by the URS thinking about joining the Green Globe program.
team in the U.S. URS employees on site at the airport are
Due to the growing awareness of tourists about environmental issues, promotion of your company’s
working with more than 180 engineers and architects on the
commitment to the environment via Green Globe certification can give you a significant competitive
$800 million APM — the largest people mover system ever
market advantage and can also help you reduce your operating costs by facilitating best practice
built.
management. Green Globe certification can also attract ethical investment and provide a sound base for
“The award demonstrates how, as a global firm, URS can environmental or triple-bottom-line reporting to stakeholders.
effectively export its capabilities to benefit clients anywhere
Hotels, resorts, tour operators, convention centres, golf clubs, marinas, restaurants, tourism suppliers
in the world,” says Project Manager Tim Gosbell, who led the
and transport companies can all apply for certification under the Green Globe standard, as can entire
Australian project team along with Project Engineer Emilio
communities, Councils or protected areas. If you are interested in Green Globe certification, URS can help
DePaulis. “Each day, as the U.S. team signed off, the
you get there.
Australian team commenced its work, providing a 24-hour
engineering and design service. This was a great asset to the To put you in the picture, the Green Globe certification process comprises three stages:
project, which is being designed and constructed on a fast-
A. Affiliation: Affiliate companies are not eligible to use the Green Globe brand, but are given access to
track schedule.”
advice about environmental management.
Being able to tap the resources of its global network for
B. Benchmarking: To use the Green Globe logo, companies are required adopt and implement an
projects like the Dallas–Fort Worth people mover gives URS
environmental and social policy, and to be ‘benchmarked’ against a set of environmental Earth Check™
a competitive advantage. Utilising the latest electronic
indicators which have been developed by the CRC for Sustainable Tourism.
technology, staff at locations at great distances from each
other and from project sites can provide engineering and The indicators cover environmental performance areas such as energy consumption, greenhouse gas
design services for major transportation and other infra- emissions, potable water, solid waste reduction, social commitment, resource conservation, water quality
structure projects without leaving their home office. “The and biodiversity conservation.
critical link on the APM project was effective communications
Companies need to meet specified performance standards in each of these areas to be eligible to use
with the client and on-site personnel,” says Tim. “Our primary
the Green Globe logo and must make year-on-year improvements to retain it.
tool was the Internet and a file transfer protocol (FTP) site,
which enabled project team members to access and transfer C. Certification: To achieve certification and be eligible to use the Green Globe ‘tick’, companies must
vital information on the project instantly.” be successfully benchmarked and must have fully implemented the Green Globe standard (which requires
the adoption of environmental management procedures).
For further information contact Tim Gosbell, Senior Principal.
URS is well placed to help you improve your performance against any of the Earth Check™ indicators and
Email: tim_gosbell@urscorp.com
develop a Green Globe compliant environmental management system, and we can offer strategic advice
in regard to implementing sustainability throughout your organisation.
We encourage you to consider the benefits that Green Globe certification would offer your organisation or
project, and to visit the Green Globe website at www.ggasiapacific.com.au
For further information please contact Cathlin Collins or Noel Corkery.
Email: cathlin_collins@urscorp.com or noel_corkery@urscorp.com
Due Diligence work in India
URS has just completed a due diligence Environment, Health and Safety (EHS) Review of six lead/zinc
mines and four smelting operations for Hindustan Zinc Ltd in India. The EHS Review is required as part
of the Government of India’s proposed privatisation of the mining and mineral processing industry. The
site visit was undertaken over a four-week period. The EHS Review involved detailed inspection of key site
areas, interviews with selected personnel, review of internal compliance documents, verification of
compliance with relevant EHS legislation and regulations, review of EHS per formance and
recommendations for performance improvement.
The Indian project was quickly followed by an Environmental Audit of the Iduapriem Gold Mine operated
by Ghanaian Australian Goldfields Ltd in Ghana. The Audit involved inspection of seven open cut pits,
several waste rock dumps and two tailings storage facilities. The scope of the audit included an
assessment of compliance with international and Ghanaian environmental requirements, an evaluation of
Merv Jones, Asia Pacific Managing Director (far right) congratulating the DFW
project team (left to right) Claude Borstner, Ian Kennedy, Tim Gosbell, Emilio the standard of on-site environmental performance, and provision of a range of recommended
DePaulis, and Angelo Thurairajah. performance improvement measures required moving towards industry best practice in environmental
management.
For further information contact Alan Robertson, Associate Geochemist.
Email: alan_robertson@urscorp.com
4
Hydrogeological study for
waste disposal A step towards
sustainable forest management
PT. Caltex Pacific Indonesia (CPI) has been operating in Duri field for
about 50 years. Currently, crude oil recovery is obtained by injecting
steam into the oil reservoir, which lightens the crude so it can be Developing countries in the tropics are often reliant on their forest resources for a
pumped out and shipped to the central gathering stations. It is significant portion of their income, and the globalisation of trade has provided
typical of the Duri field that the crude oil contains fine sands, which increased opportunities for trade in timber products. As a consequence, some
after the separation processes are called oil sand. CPI has forests are being harvested at a rate and with methods, that are not sustainable.
evaluated alternatives for the management of oily sands from To help address this forest loss and increase the supply of certified timber, a
production operations in the Duri Oilfield, Sumatra. Currently these number of major European companies trading in tropical wood products have come
sands are largely used for surface cover as Premix. A reduction in together to form the Tropical Forest Trust (TFT).
the volume of these sands is planned with the introduction of a Sand
Plant, which will remove a proportion of the entrained oil. However, The TFT aims to:
the volume of Premix produced will still exceed the requirements for
roadway and well pad sealing. Hence an environmentally sound – Boost trade in wood products derived from forests where management
disposal alternative is required. has been third party independently certified to be environmentally
appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable;
CPI has already completed an evaluation of alternatives, and the
preferred alternative is to dispose of these sands into deep – catalyze an increase in the area of independently certified tropical
formations within the oilfield that contain saline groundwater. forests; and
The method of disposal is referred to as Slurry Fraction Injection – to raise public awareness of tropical forest conservation issues.
(SFI), and involves the high-pressure injection of the slurried oily TFT members encourage their suppliers to source wood originating from forests that
sands into permeable formations at approximately 500 m depth. In are third party independently certified as well managed, or from forests that are
addition, there is also a requirement to dispose of brine waste clearly progressing towards Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification.
produced during exchange resin regeneration. To conform to the
permitting requirements of the Government of Indonesia, an The Trust uses two financial mechanisms to assist its suppliers to achieve
extensive Hydrogeological Study of the Duri Field has been carried certification. Firstly, TFT members agree to contribute to the Trust a levy on their
out to demonstrate whether planned activities have potential to wood imports from tropical countries. The funds are used to support specific
create impacts on human health or the environment via projects to assist suppliers (forest owners/concessionaires) achieve forest
exposure/transport routes in the shallow or deep groundwater certification. Secondly, TFT members pay higher prices to exporters for FSC certified
aquifer. wood products.
The Trust currently operates on a budget of around US$1 million per year, to fund
For further information contact Kian Siong, Environmental Chemist. specific projects that assist suppliers engage in certification and otherwise support
Email: kian_siong@urscorp.com the development of trade in certified wood products from tropical regions.
URS Forestry has formed a strong association with TFT.
Together we have:
– Provided ongoing technical advice to Perak Integrated Timber Company
(PITC) on reduced impact harvesting techniques. PITC is aiming for
FSC certification for the operation of its 9,000 hectare concession for
Proposed Nyato Palm Oil tropical Dipterocarp forest in peninsular Malaysia; and
– In collaboration with World Bank and WWF, designed the Kon Plong
Mill in Indonesia project in Vietnam, which aims to achieve FSC certification for a
63,000 hectare project area. The project area’s natural forests are
some of the last in Vietnam, support some of the country’s few
URS Indonesia has provided geotechnical site investigation services remaining tigers, and are also the M’Nam people’s traditional home.
to PT. Ballast Indonesia Construction for the proposed new Nyato The Kon Plong area is scheduled for logging so the development of
Palm Oil Mill. The project is located in Keruing Estate, Kecamatan sustainable forest management practices is urgently required.
Mandah, Riau Province, Sumatra, Indonesia. There is no road
access to site. The existing local transport is by boat and takes For more information on URS Forestry, contact Andrew Morton,
about three hours to reach the site from the nearest village along the Vice President, URS Forestry. Email: andrew_w_morton@urscorp.com
Guntung River. The Nyato Palm Oil Mill is intended as the processing
plant for Crude Palm Oil (CPO) from plantations in the surrounding For more information on Tropical Forest Trust, email: tropicft@aol.com
area.
Ballast has completed a preliminary design based on the existing
geotechnical investigation data from another Palm Oil Mill, which is
located about 20 km from the proposed mill site. The site comprises
extensive deposits of compressible, very soft to soft clay soils. It is
understood that the construction of the Nyato Palm Oil Mill will
include the placement of 3 metres of reclamation fill over an area of
approximately 6 hectares. Sand will be used as the filling material
for working platforms and the installation of vertical drains to reduce
the time for consolidation and associated settlements.
For further information contact Hendro Songto, Geotechnical
Manager. Email: hendro_songto@urscorp.com
Training in reduced impact harvesting
techniques, Malaysia.
5
Placing a dollar value on triple bottom line performance
Successful management of business risk has considerable potential impact on the restructured project was assessed. This information
to improve the so-called triple bottom line – the social, environment- was used to: assist development of the bid; decide whether to
al and financial accountability of a business. But how can this be proceed with the bid; and confidently set the quantum of the tender.
demonstrated?
The method was also used at the Ok Tedi mine in Papua New Guinea
Many companies and organisations now realise that they need to to assess various mine waste management options; to provide an
take triple bottom line aspects into account when making decisions understanding of the complex inter-relationships between the mine,
and in determining corporate behaviour. However, organisations are the river system, and the people of the river catchment; and to use
faced with a major challenge to incorporate the more qualitative, or social and ecological risk events to differentiate between options.
intangible, considerations of environmental and social aspects into The process led to Government approval for the selected option.
their approach to business management.
In Australia, two public corporations used the method to identify the
Recently, a method has been published to address the issue of full range of community financial benefits associated with
incorporating environmental, financial and social aspects into substantially improved public amenity that could be created by
business decision-making and overall performance. This method relocation of a planned wastewater treatment plant from
incorporates a quantitative process that translates “intangible” immediately behind a popular recreational beach to a position
environmental and social issues into financial measures that can be further inland. The corporations were able to demonstrate a strong
used with more traditional measures to develop defensible risk financial benefit to the community and were able to work together to
management strategies that address the triple bottom line. The achieve the benefit through a self-funding arrangement.
technique involves using expert panels to provide best judgements
Corporate reporting is another area where consideration of triple
on complex, uncertain events.
bottom line elements is being increasingly required. Regulatory and
The method has been applied over the last 10 years to many industry pressure is increasing for corporations to disclose potential
challenging corporate applications that have included: putting a contingent environmental and product liabilities. It is now possible to
dollar value on the risk of power generation asset acquisitions; achieve compliance with corporate repor ting regulations and
financial benefit-cost analysis of mine tailings management options; guidelines, to derive balance sheet recovery of contingent liabilities,
management of water supply and wastewater assets; development and to develop insurance strategies that are more likely to be well
of environmental risk management strategies for manufacturers; conceived, cost effective, and genuinely reduce corporate exposure
formulation of protective bonds for waste management and mine to contingent liability.
operations; total community benefit-cost analysis for new urban
These examples demonstrate that substantial corporate benefits
development; assessment of risk associated with harbour
can arise by taking advantage of the emerging opportunities that the
deepening; and evaluation of community safety and financial risk
triple bottom line agenda presents. Organisations that are at the
posed by major dams and tourism facilities.
forefront of implementing innovative ideas to include triple bottom
This work has been carried out in the United States, the UK, line considerations in decision-making and risk management are
Australia, South East Asia, and New Zealand. The organisations enjoying a competitive edge.
involved showed a strong commitment to understanding and
Dr Adrian Bowden is Senior Principal of Business Risk Strategies, a
including triple bottom line issues in their business decisions and
Division of URS, and senior author of the newly published book Triple
have demonstrated a preparedness to try new concepts and ideas
Bottom Line Risk Management – Enhancing Profit, Environmental
to improve their financial, environmental and community
Performance and Community Benefit (Wiley, New York) by Adrian
performance.
Bowden, Malcolm Lane and Julia Martin.
For example, the method has been used many times during the bid
preparation process for acquisition of major power generation For further information contact Dr. Adrian Bowden, Senior Principal,
assets in the USA, UK and Australia. The method has been used to Business Risk Strategies. Email: adrian_bowden@urscorp.com
assess the profile of risk and the potential financial liability due to
current and future environmental and regulatory conditions. On that
basis, a program of risk reduction actions was developed and their
Enhancement of Geraldton Port
Geraldton, 424 km north of Perth, is one of used to provide the port with additional hard standing area on a reclamation currently
Australia’s busiest regional ports, predom- being constructed on the north side of the harbour basin.
inantly serving the region’s grain and mining
A secondary objective of the project is to improve the Port’s operational capability by
industries. Due to current depth restrictions
improving public safety. To achieve this objective, the GPA proposes to construct a new
on navigability in both the harbour basin and
breakwater along its eastern boundary to provide a physical separation between Port
access channel, large vessels are unable to
operations and City recreational areas. The eastern breakwater and associated land
access facilities, substantially reducing the
reclamation also need to accommodate a future railway line required to improve
port’s efficiency and competitive advantage.
operational efficiency of the Port, and improve foreshore access.
Therefore, the Geraldton Port Authority (GPA) has embarked on the Port Enhancement
In addition, the construction of an eastern breakwater, plus the availability of dredged
Project (PEP) to enable Handymax-size vessels (40,000 – 50,000 dwt) to sail from
sand as fill for beach nourishment purposes, and the potential availability of fill from
Geraldton Port fully laden.
the imminent construction of the Southern Transport Corridor (STC), provides an
URS commenced work on the project in December 1999 with the project completion opportunity for the City of Geraldton (COG) to undertake the planned Town Beach
expected in late 2003. URS has been able to offer GPA the range of skills and Foreshore Redevelopment. The GPA will coordinate the engineering design studies and
expertise required to undertake the diverse range and sheer magnitude of work construction works required for the Town Beach Foreshore Redevelopment. Such works
required, including: will include the seaward extension (~50 m) of existing rock groynes on Town Beach,
and the addition of a small groyne to the north-west corner of the Batavia Coast
– Project Management of large, complex multidisciplinary projects;
Marina.
– Coastal engineering;
The COG will assume responsibility for stabilising and developing the reclamation of
– Civil engineering; Town Beach once it has been constructed by the GPA. In the meantime the COG has
set in place the consultative and planning mechanisms to bring about the foreshore
– Structural engineering;
redevelopment.
– Dredging;
The dredges required to undertake this project are currently available in mid to late
– Marine environmental services; 2002. A major constraint on dredging operations is the wave climate at Geraldton.
– Geotechnical investigations; and Feasibility studies have determined that a minimum of 10 months dredging works are
required, and that the optimum timing for these works is between October and July in
– Community liaison. any one year. The GPA therefore proposes to commence the Project in October 2002.
To achieve the GPA’s objective, it will be necessary to deepen both the harbour basin
and the access channel by between 2.8 m and 4.1 m. This will require a long-term (10 For further information contact David May, Principal. Email: david_may@urscorp.com
months) dredging programme and offshore disposal of some 3.5 M m3 of limestone or Tony Byrne, Senior Principal. Email: tony_byrne@urscorp.com
rock in deep water. Some 350,000 m3 of rock dredged from the harbour basin will be
6
Opportunities which exist for development assistance to enhance
Plantation development
both the industry’s and Lao’s sustainable development include:
– alleviating poverty through generating sustainable economic
growth from plantation activities;
in Lao PDR – increasing private sector investment in plantations and
processing; and
URS Forestry has extensive experience in feasibility assessments for forest investments and plantation – developing markets for plantation products.
development and management. As such, we were well placed to conduct an investigation for the Asian The results of this investigation will be used in the longer term
Development Bank (ADB) to identify the key issues relevant to future plantation development in Lao PDR. plantation projects that the ADB has established in Lao PDR.
Specifically, this report examined: For further information on URS Forestry’s
plantation development experience
– Whether forest plantations in Lao PDR provide potential for viable investment and the
please contact Mark Kelly, Director,
possible benefits and risks associated with investing in development of the sector;
Market Intelligence, URS Forestry.
– the progress of the plantation industry to date; Email: mark_a_kelly@urscorp.com
– issues relevant to promoting plantation development in Lao PDR; and
– development needs of the plantation sector.
The investigation concluded that whilst the tree plantation sector in Lao PDR is at an early stage of
development, there are a number of positive signs for future development. These include increasing
domestic and export market opportunities and the presence of both local and foreign private sector
Eucalyptus plantations
companies that are investing in plantation development and processing. This situation provides a unique in Lao PDR.
chance for development assistance to complement private sector investment as the key driver of
plantation sector development.
gas to liquids
Artists impression of the proposed methanol plant
URS has successfully negotiated an opportunity for the UK Company GTL Resources to pursue an expedited environmental assessment
process for their proposed methanol plant on the Burrup Peninsula in the north-west of Western Australia. Through the forward-thinking
URS accelerates
approach adopted by URS, GTL Resources may save up to 20 weeks on the environmental approvals process.
The expedited process, known as an Environmental Protection Statement (EPS), was introduced into the WA Environmental Protection
Act in 1999. The primary differences between the EPS level of assessment and the Public Environmental Review (PER) level are the
absence of a formal public review period and the subsequent need to address submissions. The preparation of an EPA Bulletin and a
public review period for the bulletin are also avoided.
Under an EPS, the formal public review period is replaced by a two week public appeals period, during which appeals can be made on
the level of assessment and/or the contents of the EPA report on the EPS. If an appeal on the level of assessment is upheld by the
Minister for the Environment, then the proposal is referred back to the EPA to be assessed more fully or more publicly. It is possible
that the EPA could then require a PER level of assessment. It is therefore essential that, under an EPS, the proponent undertakes
comprehensive community and stakeholder consultation, to ensure that all potential appealable issues have been revealed and
addressed.
Some concerns were raised when URS announced their intention to pursue an EPS level of assessment for the GTL project – such
industrial developments have typically been considered automatic candidates for the PER route. However, URS considered the EPS to
be an appropriate level of assessment on the grounds that:
– the land proposed for the plant site is appropriately zoned for industrial land use;
– the plant site is adjacent to the large Woodside LNG plant at Withnell Bay;
– the proposed project is principally of local interest and will have localised impacts, many of which can be readily managed;
– the local community is familiar with industrial projects and is generally supportive of them;
– there have been four major PERs for developments on the Burrup Peninsula released over the past four years, in which
the key environmental concerns have been well defined; and
– a comprehensive stakeholder and community consultation programme is underway and will continue throughout the
production of the EPS.
Following regular discussions with the Department of Environment, Water & Catchment Protection and a comprehensive presentation
to the Chairman of the EPA in December 2001, the EPA agreed that the proposal had the potential to be progressed as an EPS.
For further information please contact Ian Baxter. Email: ian_baxter@urscorp.com
7
URS and Goulburn-Murray Water won the
Victorian Institution of Engineers, Australia
division award for “Urban or Regional
Infrastructure up to A$10 million” for the
Innovative design approach
Lake Eppalock remedial works project. upgrades safety of Australian dam
The safety of the Lake Eppalock dam, in Victoria, Australia, was becoming an increasingly urgent issue, and
conventional remedies were either unaffordable or likely to worsen the effects of a serious drought. An
innovative and aggressive remedial strategy was required to upgrade the structure’s safety while keeping it
innovation in dam design
in operation.
When the dam was originally built in 1962, contemporary practice was for relatively steep slopes and
uncompacted rockfill construction to achieve cost savings. More than 30 years later, Goulburn-Murray Water
(G-MW), the new owner and operator of the dam, discovered that significant cracking had been taking place
on the main embankment of Lake Eppalock for many years. G-MW engaged URS to undertake a
comprehensive evaluation of the structure and to design appropriate rehabilitation measures.
The main embankment at Lake Eppalock has a maximum height of 47 metres and consists of a clay core,
upstream and downstream filter zones, and a rockfill shell. Intermittent cracking of the road surface
combined with an accelerating rate of settlement of the rockfill alerted G-MW to the problem. Prolonged
drought conditions aggravated the situation. Ongoing monitoring surveys indicated that each succeeding low
reservoir level was causing a dramatic increase in settlement and cracking, resulting in a real risk of failure.
Further investigations revealed that the dam’s principal line of defence was inadequate because the filter
contained too much fine material. If a flow path developed through the core, piping could lead to a
catastrophic breach failure of the dam, resulting in serious damage downstream and possible loss of life.
With extensive cracks already observed in the crest and accelerating settlement occurring during the most
severe drought in the past 20 years, the reservoir had dropped well below historic levels. The safety risk was
judged to be unacceptable and the dam was in urgent need of remediation.
Seeking a Solution
A serious situation of this type could require draining the reservoir and taking the storage and roadway out
of service while the dam was completely rebuilt. However, keeping the dam in operation was considered
essential for the customers that rely on this water. As a consequence, it appeared that the only way to
address the deep-seated settlement slip in the embankment was to place a huge amount of fill to stabilise
the whole embankment.
This solution would have been exceedingly costly and also would have caused significant environmental
problems. An approach was needed that would allow the storage to remain in service throughout the project.
G-MW worked with URS to find a way of resolving the stability problems within the main embankment that
would be cost-effective and could be carried out without disrupting the downstream community. This required
the understanding of a complex failure mechanism and the design of remedial works that could be built
quickly, taking advantage of a temporary low storage level that resulted from low inflows.
Following the identification of the problem in the investigation and design review, a streamlined program of
option studies, design, and documentation was undertaken in preparation for the stabilisation of the most
vulnerable portions of the embankment section. Close surveillance of the dam performance was conducted
during the falling reservoir period, and the dam safety emergency plan was updated to maintain a safe
operating condition.
Environmental Preservation
The need for environmental preservation was taken into consideration even before the project commenced.
A comprehensive environmental management plan (EMP) was prepared for the main embankment remedial
works project, and an independent environmental management committee and auditor were appointed to
review the plan. The EMP covered environmental management planning, emergency procedures, special
controls, environmental management systems, and restoration and revegetation plans.
Water quality in the Campaspe River, particularly after storm events, was a key concern. As a protective
measure, the large clay stockpile was relocated to a distant, more secure area. In addition, water-quality
defenses such as barriers and silt traps were constantly reviewed to protect the integrity of the water quality.
The EMP ensured that existing environmental aspects were safeguarded and, where possible, improved
upon. A community of rare striped legless lizards was identified in the preliminary studies, and steps were
taken to shield the natural habitat of the species. Also, an extensive revegetation program improved the
coverage of flora at the site, and an old quarry site was revegetated as part of the project.
Program Management Highlights:
PROJECT TIMELINESS – works were completed to original program
FINANCIAL BUDGET – the project cost came in 15% below approval
SAFETY – no lost time accidents
ENVIRONMENT – no negative environmental impacts caused by the works
G-MW managed construction of the project directly, which allowed an earlier start, increased flexibility,
improved control over timeliness and weather effects, reduced risk of contractual disputes, tighter quality
control, and made it easier to respond to local community requirements.
Community Awareness
Lake Eppalock is a valued community asset that serves as a recreation facility and tourist attraction, in
addition to its primary function as a source for urban water supply and rural irrigation. Once the decision was
taken to implement the project, a communication plan was established to inform the local community of the
importance of the project and what its effects might be. Noise, archeological, and social heritage studies
were performed along with the those affecting the environment. Residents of the area were kept abreast of
the project’s progress through informational brochures. There also were regular site visits for students,
senior citizens, and local service groups.
The community responded well to a serious situation, as failure of Eppalock’s main embankment could have
resulted in total losses of more than A$2.1 billion. In developing a timely response to a hazardous condition,
the dam safety upgrade project has assured the future of an important water resource.
For further information contact Dick Davidson, Senior Principal and Vice President.
8 Email: richard_davidson@urscorp.com or Ron Fleming, Principal Civil Engineer. Email:
ron_fleming@urscorp.com
Japan or China
market of 120 million people, whereas China has a URS Forestry Ausnewz forms part of URS Forestry’s
market of 1.3 billion people who currently use market intelligence service. This service produces a
approximately one tenth of the per capita consumption range of publications such as ‘The future for pulpwood
of paper and paperboard as in Japan. As such, it is not in Japan and China’ which provide analysis of the forest
– the future pulpwood surprising that the two countries have very different and wood products and pulp and paper industries in
dominator? demand outlooks with respect to pulpwood.
In Japan, the industry is working toward a long term
Australasia and Asia.
For more information regarding URS Forestry Ausnewz
fibre supply plan that makes assumptions about and our market intelligence capabilities please contact
In the last decade there has been a worldwide demand growth and embraces policies according to Mark Kelly, Director, Market Intelligence, URS Forestry.
expansion of Eucalypt pulpwood plantations. Australia these assumptions. As such, it is believed that the Email: mark_a_kelly@urscorp.com
has been at the forefront of this expansion with over market available to third par ty plantation wood or visit the Ausnewz website at: www.ausnewz.com.au
half a million hectares of blue gum plantations having suppliers is going to be extremely limited in relation to
been established. prospective supply and this will consequently have
considerable ramifications for impor ted pulpwood
In the Australian context, where much of the expansion prices.
has been supply driven and motivated by taxation
deductions, many of the growers have not secured China, although potentially a much larger market, is
markets but have seemingly assumed a woodchip presently a developing economy with a government still
export trade with Japan where historically, prices have exercising a high level of direct control over the
increased in real terms. This assumption is not availability of resources and their ultimate utilisation.
surprising, given that in 1998, Japan was responsible The investigation concludes that the common
for, in dollar terms, 83% of the woodchip tonnage assumption that China is a giant market with little in
traded from Australia. Further assumptions have been the way of wood supplies, but enormous potential pulp
made regarding China, where the population and a and paper demand, is simplistic. Rather, there is
rising standard of living are taken as automatic growing a significant amount of pulpwood but it will
indicators of a vast future market for pulp and paper actually be some time before China has the capital
and, therefore, imported pulpwood. resources to transform that harvest into bleached kraft
pulp. It is believed to be more likely that China’s need
The “Future Market for Pulpwood in Japan & China”, a for high grade paper and pulp will be met from domestic
publication from URS Forestry Ausnewz, aims to and international sources and that it could become a
establish the prospects for imported pulpwood in competitor on the international pulpwood market. Its
Japan and China – the two largest but very different, geographical proximity to Japan will enhance its
markets in Asia. When compared, Japan has a mature competitiveness in the pulpwood trade.
One of New Zealand’s most significant current trans-
portation projects is taking shape under the energy and
expertise of URS. URS New Zealand
The State Highway 20 Mt Roskill Extension is a vital link
in completing Auckland’s motorway system and helping to
leads one of the country’s largest
solve the region’s transport issues. On the drawing board transportation projects
for many years, the project has now been given a high
priority by local government and Transit New Zealand, the
organisation responsible for managing the country’s State
Highway network.
In September last year, URS New Zealand was appointed
to lead the detailed design for the NZ$140 million project
with a demanding programme schedule that has a start to
construction due to begin this coming September.
The URS State Highway 20 Project Team is producing a
comprehensive design for 4.5 km of new motorway ex- Members of the URS
New Zealand State
tending the existing motorway from Hillsborough to
Highway 20 Project Team
Richardson Rd and which includes: pictured around the route
map are, back from left,
– a four lane motorway from Hillsborough Rd Adrian Ogier, Noel
to Sandringham Rd, with provision to widen Nancekivell, Belinda
Petersen, Noel Tunnicliffe,
to six lanes in the future;
Michelle Carr, Ben Chester
and Perry Kostanich and
– interchange locations at Hillsborough Rd
seated from left are,
and Dominion Rd; deputy project team leader
Paul Ellis and project team
– local connections to Sandringham Rd and leader Graham Chapman.
Maioro St;
– provision of future bus shoulder lanes, and
compatibility with possible rail rapid transit
schemes using an existing proposed rail
Says Mr Drury: “An effective transport network is vital “We are about half-way through the
corridor;
to the economic health and overall quality of life for detailed design. The consenting process
– integration of a cycleway, working with the residents of any large and expanding city – and is continuing, and there is also a sizeable
Auckland City Council; and Auckland certainly has its challenges. It is enormously land acquisition programme that is run-
satisfying for us collectively and individually to be able ning alongside the other components of
– pedestrian footbridges and landscaping.
to apply our expertise and energy to projects that will the project. As well, we are gearing up to
It is URS New Zealand’s largest scale project to date and make a real difference to many people and for many begin a section of enabling works involv-
one URS New Zealand Chief Executive Mark Drury says years to come.” ing a stormwater pond and landscaping
reflects the company’s expanding role as a leading at the gateway to the project at
Paul Ellis, a civil engineer with more than 25 years’
provider of transportation solutions, particularly in the Queenstown Rd.”
experience, exudes enthusiasm for the project for
Auckland region.
which he is design manager and deputy team leader: “It As part of the project, URS New Zealand
“Along with our continuing work in rapid transit systems, is exciting. It is challenging and it is demanding. Transit has developed an Internet resource for
including rail, we have been involved in key strategic New Zealand acknowledges it’s a fast track plan but Transit New Zealand to keep the public
projects from the Shelly Beach Flyover on the Auckland what we are seeing as a result is a team spirit and URS and other interested parties informed
Harbour Bridge to major intersection improvements such client commitment on a scale to match.” and up to date on progress.
as the Great South Rd and Station Rd junction at Penrose. Visit: www.transit.govt.nz
Mr Ellis says the project team of about 50 engineers,
planners, environmental scientists, and CAD draughts-
For further information please contact
people, including subconsultants, is on track with the
Paul Ellis. Email: paul_ellis@urscorp.com
project programme.
9
Subic Bay, Philippines
Plans for an ecologically and economically sustainable future
In 1992, the U.S. Navy withdrew from its base at We also made an initial attempt to
Subic Bay, leaving an airstrip, port facilities, and a identify human use values of the
fully functional infrastructure for a small city. Shortly ecosystems such as bamboo for building,
thereafter, the former naval base and parcels of various plants and animals as food, and
surrounding land were designated as the Subic Bay Freeport Zone by Republic Act No. plant materials for medicinal purposes.
7227, by virtue of the area’s existing modern facilities and proximity to Metro Manila. The indigenous Aeta community had
Besides extensive development facilities, the zone encompassed undeveloped additional values, based on their
beaches, mangrove swamps, coral reefs, and tropical rain forest, which had been dependence on the forest and mangrove
protected from development and used by the U.S. Navy for jungle survival training. The areas for most of their food and
indigenous inhabitants of the forest, the Aeta, had continued to live in the forest construction materials.
through the occupation of the area by the U.S. Navy and after the establishment of the
freeport zone. Public Involvement
Realising the value of the surviving natural areas, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority Once we had developed the initial framework of values, we held our initial workshop.
(SBMA), which administers the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, established the Subic Forest Invited stakeholders included the various departments of the SBMA (Strategic Planning,
Watershed Reserve, which became the nucleus of the proposed protected area. SBMA Tourism, etc.), representatives of the Aeta community, developers, local and regional
then set about the challenging tasks of simultaneously planning for the future government units, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, non-
development of the freeport and protection of its valuable natural resources. In August government organisations (NGOs) such as World Wildlife Fund, and the public in general.
1999, SBMA hired URS Philippines, to assist it in developing a Protected Areas
After brief presentations of the approach and values framework, stakeholders were
Management Plan for the freeport zone. The plan was to be developed consistent with
divided into groups based on common interest (such as local government units or
the National Integrated Protected Areas System Act in order to protect the native flora
developers) and asked to modify or add to the initial list of values. A representative of
and fauna for the Philippine people of present and future generations.
each group then presented their values to the whole group. What became apparent to
all present was that there were many common values, but also many values that were
A Unique Approach in potential conflict. For example, forest values for endangered species habitat were in
Successfully establishing a protected area in the freeport zone meant confronting obvious conflict with values for timber harvest that would destroy habitat. This was an
numerous challenges. Much of the forest area was considered traditional land, important outcome; it made all participants realise that it is not possible to have all
claimed by the indigenous Aeta community. The Filipino inhabitants surrounding the values preserved in any one location. It set the stage for understanding the basis for
bay exerted intense fishing pressures on marine resources and extracted bamboo and developing use zones within the protected area. In addition to workshops, developers
other materials from the forest. Perhaps most importantly, the potential for conflict and strategic planning groups were engaged directly to establish a joint approach to
between freeport development and natural resource protection loomed as a major ecosystem protection and support compatible types of development.
concern.
For the protected area’s management plan to be successful, each of the concerns had A Sustainable Approach
to be identified and addressed. To be sure that nothing was missed during planning, It is axiomatic that as a resource becomes limited, its value increases. The forest cover
the overall approach was designed to identify all of the ecological values and human of the Philippines has been reduced to less than 10% of what it was in 1900, and areas
use values of the ecological resources within the freeport zone. where the forest is adjacent to mangrove and marine habitats are even more limited.
The overall approach was based on the pragmatic principle that decisions are made, This rarity provides opportunities for sustainable development of these resources for a
based on values. Therefore, decisions regarding the sustainable protection of variety of recreational uses including scuba diving, forest trekking, bird watching, and
ecological resources at Subic Bay would be based on the real and perceived values of other sustainable income-producing activities. Some resources have multiple values. For
the ecological resources. In practice, the approach was conceptually simple: example, the giant fruit bats that roost in large colonies in the forest are ecologically
important as seed dispersers, an important food item for the Aeta and hunters in
– identify ecological and human values of the natural resources; neighbouring communities, and the roost is also an important tourist attraction. The
– identify concerns and issues of the various stakeholders; and existing infrastructure around Subic Bay provides easy access and comfortable lodging
– develop a plan that protected values and addressed concerns. near these resources and enhances the opportunities for ecologically compatible
economic development.
We began by identifying the ecological values, using a systematic and comprehensive
approach. Protection of a healthy sustainable ecosystem was identified as the The protected areas management plan being developed at Subic Bay will serve as a
ultimate value to be protected, because all other values depended on it. Values model of how to incorporate the needs of the indigenous population, surrounding
common to all ecosystems were then stated as: communities, developers, and NGOs to optimise benefits to all stakeholders. Use of the
forest by the Aeta has been identified as a primary use of the core and sustainable use
– biological diversity (biodiversity) – the number and relative abundance of all species; zones. Recreation zones provide for managed use of natural resources. As a whole, the
– functional integrity – patterns of organisation among ecosystem components; and protected area and buffer zone categories are designed to address all of the values
– energy and nutrient dynamics – including processes such as productivity and identified throughout the planning process. Areas protected from fishing serve as
decomposition. nursery areas for the fishers of Subic Bay, and anticipated development will create jobs
compatible with planning for alternative livelihood strategies by those individuals
In general terms, these three properties describe the composition, organisation, and affected by the establishment of the protected area. At the same time, the plan
process rates within an ecosystem. They are also easy to understand in general maintains a clear focus on sustaining the natural heritage of the Philippines for current
terms, thus facilitating communication with the diverse group of stakeholders. and future generations. Values identification, stakeholder participation, and realisation
The next step was to develop a food web based on functional groups within the of economic benefit are fundamental elements of the process and critical for its
ecosystem. A food web is the sum of all feeding interactions among all organisms in success. The approach should serve as a model for addressing development compatible
an ecosystem. By basing the web on functional groups based on food habits, we could with the protection of ecological values in a wide range of situations.
be sure that we included all species, whether or not we had actually recorded them The URS team operates out of a project office in Subic Bay, and is supported by staff
from the area because each species would fall into at least one of the functional and expertise from the URS Manila office. The project team is:
groups. It also reduced a complex ecosystem composed of thousands of plant and
animal species to a manageable number. All species in the rain forest ecosystem fell – Doug Reagan, Project Manager (URS Denver)
into less than twenty functional groups such as carnivores (meat eaters), omnivores – Diolina Mercado (Senior Planner, Manila) on-site full time Project Coordinator.
(animals that consume plants and animals), and herbivores (animals that consume – Alan Niedoroda, Marine Resources (URS Tallahasee)
leaves, fruit, or nectar).
– Nick Brockaw, Forest Ecologist (Manomet Ctr Conservation Sciences)
For the purposes of this exercise, values were defined as characteristics of ecological – Rob Fitzsimmons, GIS Specialist (URS London)
components of the ecosystem. To identify the ecological values of the functional
– Joey Regunay, Planner (URS Manila)
groups (components) of the ecosystem, we systematically evaluated their attributes,
other than as food. For example, animals such as bats and butterflies that were – Jim Singleton, Planner (URS Perth)
grouped as nectar feeders had the additional ecological attribute of playing a critical A further 23 sub-consultants and eleven field inventory teams, all Philippine
role in plant reproduction by serving as pollinators. nationals and professionals, are involved in the project.
The ecological values of natural ecosystems could them be summarised in a
hierarchical manner as: For further information contact Diolina Mercado.
Email: diolina_mercado@urscorp.com
– healthy sustainable ecosystem;
– attributes common to all ecosystems (biodiversity, functional integrity, and energy
and nutrient dynamics); and
– functional components of the ecosystem and their attributes.
10
australia’s largest windfarm
Renewable Energy
An Australian Growth Industry Wind Power
With the completion of the first year of operation of the Government’s Mandatory Renewable URS has provided design services to Powercorp for their wind power
Energy Target (MRET) program we have seen a step change in activity to develop of projects in the Antarctic and in Albany, Western Australia. John
Renewable Energy projects in Australia. This is also consistent with URS’s experience around Phillips, URS Senior Design Engineer, designed the foundations and
the globe where we have worked on new wind, landfill gas, geothermal and hydro renewable provided advice on the assessment of wind loading and velocity for
generation projects. both wind turbine projects. The foundation solutions included
innovative use of ground anchors.
The MRET is a Federal government initiative designed to increase the amount of renewable
energy in Australia’s generation portfolio by 2% or 9,500 GWH by 2010. The MRET applies URS assisted Powercorp in the design and construction of
to purchases of electricity from grids over 100 MW. In the majority of situations this means Australia’s largest Windfarm with twelve turbines in Albany. The
that electricity retailers will be the liable party. The liable party will need to own and surrender 100m tall structures are capable of withstanding winds stronger
a quantity of Renewable Energy Certificates (REC) in line with their total purchase of than 220km/hr. They supply the coastal city of Albany with up to
electricity. 75% of its electricity needs. Four hundred tonnes of concrete
support each of the giants; their 35m blades rotate 10-20 times per
A renewable energy certificate represents 1 MWh of electricity that has been created by an
minute as each turbine generates up to 6.5GWh of electricity every
accredited generator from approved renewable sources of energy, such as wind, solar and
year. Each blade is the length of a 747 jumbo jet wing. The clean,
hydro. In 2001 this represents 0.24% of their total purchase, this percentage is to gradually
green energy produced by the Albany wind farm displaces 77,000
increase each year until 2010 when the market will be required to produce and surrender
tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions from traditional power
9,500,000 REC’s per year (1 REC = 1 MWh).
generation.
For the 2001 year the Office Renewable Energy Regulator (ORER) registered 333,136
The Antarctic winds, which reach up to 300 kilometres an hour, will
Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs), with 12,781 pending registration and 11,093 pending
be harnessed to power Australia’s Mawson station. Antarctica’s first
transfer (as at February 2002). Against a target of 300,000 RECs created in its first year,
large-scale wind turbine installation will provide almost a megawatt
the MRET program and industry has exceeded its first major milestone.
of power to the station. When completed, it will be the first time an
The target for 2002 increases to 1,100,000 RECs, in 2003 the target increases again to Antarctic station will be able to meet virtually all of its energy needs
1,800,000 RECs, in 2004 the target increases to 2,600,000 RECs. from a renewable source.
Since early 2000 URS has worked with the AGO, ORER and industry, initially assisting the Preliminary site investigations for installing wind turbines at the
AGO in the development of the Regulations and later, reviewing power stations against the Antarctic Davis station are being conducted this summer. Andrew
MRET Regulations. The complex integration of generation with production for some Legge, a URS Geotechnical Engineer, is being employed this summer
generators, such as bagasse generation from sugar cane waste, required URS to work by the Australian Antarctic Division of Environment Australia to
closely with the sugar mills to develop a detailed understanding of the relationship of the conduct geotechnical investigations for the project. More detailed
sugar process to electricity generation. URS then worked with a newly created sugar industry information about the wind turbine projects in Antarctica is available
working group and ORER to develop generation models and methodologies to streamline the at the website www.aad.gov.au.
sugar industry meeting the new Regulations.
For further information contact John Phillips, Principal.
While ORER is supervising the REC program, other Government agencies such as the NSW
Email: john_phillips@urscorp.com
Sustainable Energy Development Authority (SEDA) have a range of programs to assist
industry fast–track the development of Renewable Energy projects. Working for SEDA, URS
has recently completed a report identifying the renewable energy opportunities from dry
agricultural by-products, such as rice husks and wheat stalks. Using URS experts in
agriculture, energy conversion and generation technologies, technical and financial modelling URS provides a full suite of engineering and environmental
and GIS, URS identified the most promising locations to site Renewable Energy generators services to the renewable energy industry. To further assist
in NSW. The study also looked at international best practise in energy conversion and clients develop wind generation projects, URS has now put
generation technology. SEDA has recently published the study. Other URS clients have also
together a team to provide a full suite of services from
requested similar studies to identify the location of resources and likely projects using landfill
project concept, wind monitoring, environmental approvals,
gas and other energy sources such as coal seam methane.
public consultation, structural and civil design, through
For further information contact Mike Stacey, Principal. commissioning to the ultimate decommissioning, site
Email: michael_stacey@urscorp.com remediation and redevelopment.
11
Status of
a critical
resource
murray-darling basin
Environmental Audit and Certification for
Integrated Catchment
Management
I N T H E M U R R A Y - D A R L I N G B A S I N
An Environmental Audit and Certification Scheme (EA&CS)
is being prepared for trial with irrigation stakeholders in the
Murray-Darling Basin to assist in achieving Integrated
Catchment Management (ICM) goals.
An important mechanism of ICM is the setting of targets for natural
resource outcomes. However, links between catchment targets and on-
ground actions at the paddock scale are not yet well defined. EA&CS will
inform ICM policy and enable irrigation to be managed consistently across
scales for Basin-wide and local outcomes. Catchment and EA&CS systems
will be inter-related and complementary. EA&CS will link irrigation best
practice with market and resource access outcomes through partnerships
between irrigators, catchments and industry (water, rice, dairy, cotton &
viticulture).
The components of EA&CS are:
– Minimum Performance Standard – principles and criteria,
objectives and targets for guidance toward achieving and
evaluating environmental best management practice (eg
water use efficiency).
– EMS – voluntary irrigation business management support tool
providing a systematic approach to continuous environmental
improvement.
– Regular Monitoring and Reporting – for adaptive
management.
– Audit and Certification – independent verification of claims Catchment bodies and water providers will work with irrigators to monitor
through auditing will provide public assurance. There may be and report on local achievements (eg implementation of BMPs, Land and
greater scrutiny by regulators (such as those controlling water Water Management Plans, Water Allocation Plans and progress to meeting
licenses and water trades) for those who do not demonstrate targets). Industry is capable of linking EA&CS to market advantage for
adoption of water-based Best Management Practices (BMPs), irrigators, with benefits to all stakeholders (public, catchment, industry and
otherwise known as Current Recommended Practices (CRPs) irrigators). EA&CS will provide public confidence through verification of
through EA&CS. The EA&CS Catchment Stewardship label sustainable natural resource investment.
associated with certification will be a symbol of achievement
of irrigation environmental best practice. For further information please contact Martin Andrew, Director,
URS Sustainable Development. Email: martin_andrew@urscorp.com
12
The groundwater of the Murray-Darling Basin region, Australia, is both a valuable resource and a
contributing agent to the process of salinisation and land degradation. Agricultural and urban
development in the Basin have placed these water resources under considerable stress. In some
parts of the Basin, groundwater levels are rising at alarming rates, and salinisation of land and
the displacement of salt loads to the river systems is occurring.
It is predicted that these processes will continue to In recognition of the need to gain an improved – To review groundwater management arrangements and
severely degrade the usefulness of water resources in understanding of the changing status of the Basin’s propose changes, where appropriate.
the Basin, in terms of the maintenance of healthy groundwater resources, URS has been commissioned by – To identify current levels of groundwater stress in the
ecosystems and the provision of water of a suitable the Murray-Darling Basin Commission (MDBC) to Basin.
quality for irrigation and potable use. In other parts of undertake Phase 1 of the Groundwater Status Report
the Basin groundwater resources are over-allocated and project. The project follows on from a report on the Phase 1 of the project has been completed. This phase
aquifer storages are declining at equally alarming rates. Status of Groundwater in 1992, produced by the MDBC involved the establishment of communication networks
This is putting at risk the health of groundwater (1996) and a Scoping Study produced in 2000. This between state governments, compilation of readily
dependent ecosystems, and industry and domestic/ Phase 1 project will provide a 1:250 000 scale overview available data and generation of interim output products.
municipal water supplies drawn from the Basin’s various of the Basin’s groundwater resources, and facilitate an The Basin was subdivided into priority and non-priority
aquifers. understanding of how the condition of those resources areas that were defined in the Scoping Study and
varies spatially and temporally. modified to accord with the dual initiatives of the MDBC
The Murray-Darling Basin is a shallow geological feature Basin Salinity Management Strategy and the anticipated
with significant connections between surface water and The Groundwater Status Report for the Murray-Darling Groundwater Management Strategy.
groundwater. A cap on surface water usage has been in Basin has the following objectives:
place for more than 6 years resulting in increased For further information please contact David Ife, Senior
– To provide an assessment of the current extent and
pressure on groundwater resources. Groundwater usage Principal Hydrogeologist. Email: david_ife@urscorp.com
condition of groundwater resources within the Basin.
has increased considerably in areas of useable supply
and hydrographs indicate that declining groundwater – To provide an assessment of the extent to which
levels are commonplace in productive areas of the groundwater conditions (salinity and head) have
catchment. changed.
The purpose of the environmental management audits is
Environmental
URS was commissioned by the South Australian
Environment Protection Authority (EPA) to conduct an to ensure that each winery meets the standards set by
environmental management audit of 63 licenced the EPA (namely the Environmental Management Code of
Management Audit wineries, in six regions. These well known wine producing
areas across the State were Adelaide Hills/Langhorne
Practice for Wineries and Distilleries in South Australia)
before it is relieved of its licence requirement.
Creek, McLaren Vale, South East, Barossa, Clare and the
for Wineries and Riverland.
The URS project team included QSA cer tified
environmental auditors (three teams) supported by
Distilleries The EPA is considering the removal of wineries and
distilleries from the list of activities which must be
technical specialists. The project included developing an
audit protocol, followed by implementation at each of the
licenced to operate under the Environment Protection Act sites, based on:
I N S O U T H A U S T R A L I A
1993 (with the exception of any winery or distillery – Draft Environmental Management Code of Practice for
operating in breach of its licence conditions or an EPP or Wineries and Distilleries in South Australia
still needing to fully implement an agreed Environment (Consultation Draft December 1998).
Improvement Plan) by January 2002. It is a requirement
of the South Australian Environment Protection Act for – Draft Planning Guidelines for Wineries and Distilleries
wineries which crush over 500 tonnes per year to have a in South Australia.
licence. – Technical Bulletin No 11. “Winer y and Distiller y
Wastewater Monitoring Programmes”.
– Technical Bulletin No 3. “Independent Verification of
Monitoring Programmes”.
– Interim Environmental Guidelines for the Composting
and Temporary Storage of Winery Solid Waste (2001
Vintage) in South Australia, February 2001.
– The winery’s EPA licence conditions.
A risk assessment was conducted on the audit findings
to identify the high environmental risk issues associated
with each winery. The findings were then presented to the
EPA as site-specific audit reports as well as a regional
report for each of the six regions audited.
For further information please contact Craig Bancroft,
Associate Environmental Consultant.
Email: craig_bancroft@urscorp.com
13
china
Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport
Asia Pacific offices
In December of 1997, the Guangzhou International Airport Relocation Headquarters (GIARH)
announced an international competition to plan and design its new terminal facility. One year later, Adelaide +61 8 8366 1000
GIARH declared the URS and Parsons Aviation team winners, saying the team’s design captured Auckland +64 9 355 1300
the spirit of aviation and respected the culture and landscape of China. Indeed, the symmetry of
the sweeping metal roofs and arched skylights resonate with the grandeur found in classical Brisbane +61 7 3243 2111
Chinese architecture. The planning is also very Chinese in nature, recalling mandallaesque temple Broken Hill +61 8 8088 5855
constructions of the dynastic period.
Canberra +61 2 6262 9440
The Guangzhou International Airport Terminal assignment included planning for new arrival and
departure roadways and curb front, a central ticketing hall, domestic and international passenger Christchurch +64 3 374 8500
processing and baggage handling, and up to 60 narrow- and wide-body aircraft gate positions in Darwin +61 8 8981 2195
the first phase. URS’s master design concept also encompassed a commercial center, hotels, and
Hobart +61 3 6224 5855
office building, headquarters for China Southern Airlines, a conference/convention center and
railway station. Jakarta +62 21 392 6870
URS provided the following professional services: architectural services; structural, mechanical, Manila +63 2 687 9261
and electrical engineering; specialty telecommunication center design; CCTV design; flight
Melbourne +61 3 9279 2888
information display system design; baggage information display system design; master clock
design; fire alarm and detection system design; security system design; public address system Newcastle +61 2 4960 3311
design; building management system design; radio system design; telephone PABX design; and
Perth +61 8 9221 1630
baggage handling systems design.
Shanghai +86 21 6485 2302
The URS team of 12 designers and structural engineers created a distinctive, 300-foot-tall central
departure hall with connecting concourses. Mark Molen, Project Designer says, ”The structure is Singapore +65 6534 2400
very complicated; it’s curving in three dimensions. Fortunately the steel fabricators are skilled
Sydney +61 2 8925 5500
shipbuilders, so the design presents no problem. We created a unique computer model of the
design that the steel fabricators will use to craft the steel skeleton.” Wellington +64 4 496 3750
In June 2000, the Chicago Anthanaeum Museum of Architecture and Design presented URS a
2000 American Architecture Award for its design of Guanghzou Baiyun International Airport’s new
central terminal. The Chicago Athenaeum award, which recognises firms for design excellence in
new corporate, institutional, commercial and residential facilities worldwide, is one of the highest
honors in architectural design. visit www.ap.urscorp.com
When it opens in 2004, Guangzhou Baiyun will be one of the largest international airports in
southern China, accessible from a six-lane expressway and a subway station.
For further information please contact Simon Lee, Regional Manager – China.
Email: simon_lee@urscorp.com
We welcome your feedback
Please forward your enquiries and comments to
leanne_gough@urscorp.com
environmental and engineering
14
professional services
