Mrs MOYLAN (4:48 PM) —On behalf of the Joint Standing Committee on Public Works, I present the committee’s 18th and 19th reports of 2005, which are respectively titled RAAF Base Amberley redevelopment stage 2, Queensland and Relocation of RAAF College; RAAF Base East Sale, Victoria, and RAAF Base Wagga, New South Wales.

Ordered that the reports be made parliamentary papers.

Mrs MOYLAN —by leave—The first of the proposed works is intended to ensure the continued operation of RAAF Base Amberley over a 30-year planning horizon. The proposed works are estimated to cost $285.6 million. They will provide new working accommodation and infrastructure for the Multi Role Tanker Transport and 9th Force Support Battalion elements and upgrade and refurbish the base’s engineering services and infrastructure.

An inspection and public hearing was conducted at RAAF Base Amberley on Friday, 9 September 2005. The committee observed that the relocation and consolidation of the Multi Role Tanker Transport and 9th Force Support Battalion units is a major project, and wished to know what alternative options Defence had considered. Defence assured the committee that consideration had been given to a number of alternative sites, but RAAF Base Amberley had been identified as the optimum solution on both financial and operational grounds.

As project delivery methodology is a key issue in Public Works Committee inquiries, the committee sought assurance that this large and complex project would be completed on time and within budget. Defence informed the committee that it had employed individual contractors and consultants for each of the three major project elements of the proposal and gave assurances that specific contracting and delivery methodologies would deliver the project as scheduled.

During the site inspection, the committee noticed services and facilities in proximity to the base that may be affected during the redevelopment works, such as the nearby Amberley State School. Defence explained that measures would be incorporated into the project to minimise local impacts, such as the re-routing of construction traffic to avoid the school area. Evidence provided by witnesses such as the Ipswich Region Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Ipswich City Council was supportive of the redevelopment and emphasised the positive relationship between the base and the local community. I must say that this is a positive feature of all the reports that I will deliver today. The base has gone to a lot of trouble to engage the community, and the community is very solidly behind these projects.

The committee was pleased to see that the proposed development would incorporate ecologically sustainable development initiatives such as multiple metering points to allow accurate measurement and monitoring of building energy usage. Defence stated that all project elements would comply with the Ecologically sustainable development design guide for Australian government buildings, a copy of which was tabled at the public hearing.

With base redevelopment works scheduled to begin later this year, pending parliamentary approval, the committee asked whether this would have an effect on the base’s operational capability. Defence responded that works would be planned so as to maintain full F111 and Caribou capabilities throughout construction.

Having given detailed consideration to the proposal, the committee recommends that the proposed RAAF Base Amberley redevelopment stage 2, Queensland, proceed at an estimated cost of $285.6 million. I would like to thank the member for Blair. Although he could not be at the hearings on the day we scheduled them, he has taken a keen interest in this development and has given it his support.

The RAAF College relocation project, which forms the subject of the committee’s 19th report of 2005, comprises the relocation of RAAF college headquarters from Point Cook, Victoria, to the RAAF Base Wagga; the Officer Training School from Point Cook to RAAF Base East Sale; and the No. 1 Recruit Training Unit from RAAF Base Edinburgh, South Australia, to RAAF Base Wagga. The proposed works are estimated to cost $133.4 million, with at least $60 million to be expended at each site. The works will replace aged facilities and infrastructure, ensure compliance with current occupational health and safety standards, produce cost efficiencies and address deficiencies associated with overcrowding and the dysfunctional layout of existing facilities.

Public hearings and inspections were conducted in both Sale and Wagga Wagga on 16 September 2005. During its investigations, the committee noted that some RAAF College elements would continue to operate at the RAAF Base Richmond, New South Wales, and RAAF Base Amberley, Queensland. Given the expected financial and operational benefits of partial co-location, the committee was interested to know whether Defence had considered the consolidation of all RAAF College elements at a single site. Defence explained that this option had been rejected, partially due to studies conducted in New Zealand and the United Kingdom which had recommended against the co-location of recruit and officer training. Further, Defence expects synergies and opportunities to arise from the development of discrete training centres of excellence at established operational air bases.

In respect of environmental impacts, members were pleased to learn that the works would be developed in accordance with the Ecologically sustainable development design guide for Australian government buildings and section J of the Building Code of Australia, as appropriate. Defence also demonstrated that measures would be taken to protect native flora and bird life at each site.

Defence submitted that the proposed relocation project may result in the demolition of redundant facilities at RAAF Base Edinburgh, pending the results of a comprehensive heritage study and asbestos survey. The committee wished to know the number and condition of the buildings to be demolished, the amount of hazardous material to be removed from each base and the impact that this may have upon the project budget. Defence reported that both RAAF bases Wagga and Sale have comprehensive asbestos registers and would be asbestos free by 2007. Defence was unable to provide the number of buildings to be demolished at RAAF Base Edinburgh but assured the committee that the allocated demolition budget would be sufficient, as it had been calculated on the basis of full demolition of all surplus facilities. The committee recommends that Defence supply it with a comprehensive list of all buildings to be demolished at RAAF Base Edinburgh, and associated costs, as soon as that information becomes available.

The inquiry generated a considerable number of public submissions, all of which were highly supportive of the proposed works. The committee was pleased to learn of the economic and social benefits that are expected to flow on to the communities of Sale and Wagga Wagga as a result of this project. The committee has thoroughly examined this proposal and recommends that the RAAF College relocation project proceed at an estimated cost of $133.4 million.

Again, I would like to thank to my colleagues, including the member for Gippsland, who was unable to be at East Sale when we held our inquiry but who has taken a keen interest in this project and recognises the benefit to his area. The same goes for the member for Riverina, who was at the Wagga Wagga hearings and who has also taken a very great interest in this development. I would like to thank my committee colleagues and all who helped with these inquiries, particularly our secretariat and Hansard. I commend the reports to the House.