Let’s take a step back and assess the problem. Perth’s population is growing and will inevitably continue to grow in the future. The number of shipping containers – which bring us the everyday products we consume, including food, beverages, nappies, cosmetics, furniture, electronics and more – is increasing in tandem. Westport Taskforce independent chair Nicole Lockwood. Westport forecasts Perth’s shipping containers requirements will rise from 790,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) currently to more than 3.8 million TEU in 50 years’ time. This is not a problem of Westport’s or any government’s creation. It is a problem that cities all over the world are grappling with.

Loading More and more major ports that were established over a century ago, like Fremantle, are being hemmed in by urban development or being outgrown. Something has to be done; Perth’s current infrastructure can’t manage the future freight task that is being forecast. I think it’s fair to say that when planning is undertaken proactively and in a measured manner, the outcomes are better than when things are done in an urgent rush. This is what Westport is doing. From the outset, Westport faced an incredibly challenging task – there was no simple answer to this freight problem.

Our three study areas of Fremantle, Kwinana and Bunbury each had impacts – whether they were social (affecting local communities), economic (high cost) or environmental. In the end, the multi-criteria analysis tool that Westport has used to objectively assess 25 different options (as recommended by Infrastructure Australia), has clearly determined that Kwinana is the best overall option – with not just five, but most of the Kwinana options ranking higher than the Fremantle and Bunbury options. Kwinana rated significantly higher than Fremantle and Bunbury on social and economic criteria. The community impacts and significant costs required to make the Inner Harbour work long-term were too challenging to overcome. Bunbury also scored poorly on economic and environmental criteria. The strengths of the Kwinana port options were numerous. Given its location in Perth’s strategic industrial estate, existing buffers provide protection from residential development, limiting social impacts.

Loading The extensive land available at Latitude 32 and the nearby industrial estates provide a unique opportunity for businesses to co-locate adjacent to the port. Finally, the Kwinana options have the ability to grow over time and can be designed and built with the latest in sustainability and climate resilience expertise. The Westport Beacon 8 explains in detail why Fremantle could not be the long-term solution. The roads and rail – regardless of whether Roe 8/9 is considered – are significantly constrained.

While the Fremantle port wharf has some capacity, it is limited by high density urban development which makes it difficult to get the freight in and out. Overcoming those constraints comes with a significant price tag and would have major impacts on surrounding communities and heritage and tourism precincts. Many people have voiced their concern about the ongoing interaction between trucks and cars on the existing roads to the Inner Harbour. It is a better outcome – both for safety and efficiency for both cars and trucks – to direct the growth in truck volume to the Kwinana industrial area instead. If containers were to move out of Fremantle there are other benefits for the community, like freeing up the Fremantle and western suburbs’ road networks for passenger vehicles; reducing the impacts of noise, emissions and vibration on residents; and removing the need for the freight rail line running through Fremantle, perhaps allowing it to be re-purposed for passenger rail. It also allows the redevelopment of Victoria Quay and North Quay for commercial, tourism and community uses.

Loading Westport’s work shows that billions of dollars needs to be spent on either the Fremantle or Kwinana options; why not spend that money on an option that provides the maximum long-term benefits to the state? The one major hurdle for the Kwinana port will be the environment; it’s not possible to establish new infrastructure of this magnitude without having some sort of impact. Westport has prioritised environmental values from the very beginning, and any options that may have had significant environmental impacts were eliminated during the shortlisting process. Work remains ongoing, however; Westport is continuing to look at ways to mitigate, manage and offset any environmental impacts, and we remain confident of meeting our commitment to improve the overall health of Cockburn Sound through our work over the coming decade.