PROJECTS
CRADLE MOUNTAIN TOURIST ROAD
LOCATION: Lake St Claire National Park, North West Tasmania
STATUS: Completed
The Cradle Mountain Tourist Road was a unique project due to the stringent environmental requirements of this World Heritage National Park.
The construction and resurfacing work covered a six-kilometre section of the road, starting at the Visitors Centre and continuing through to the Dove Lake car park and Waldheim Spur Road.
As well as the highly sensitive environmental considerations, minimal interruption to tourism businesses and national park facilities was a prime requisite.
Careful planning and design provided a sealed single lane road that incorporated passing bays and animal runways for the native wildlife.
Construction included:
• Underground service installation
• Preparation and shaping of the existing pavement
• Installation of subsoil drains
• Foam bitumen stabilisation of the pavement
• Asphalt lining of surface drains adjacent to the pavement
• Installation of steel posts and cable fences
• Installation of animal runways
• Removal of redundant pavement to allow for rehabilitation
• Vegetation rehabilitation adjacent to the pavement
• Primer sealing
• Concrete kerb and gutter works (coloured)
• Final sealing including compliance with specific coloured aggregate requirements for fauna protection
Prior to commencement of the project there were concerns that migration of dust and gravel could cause damage to the sensitive alpine vegetation. Another factor was the ongoing maintenance to the existing road involving the importation of gravel and machinery that could expose the area to soil borne fungal diseases such as Phytphoria.
Stringent procedures were employed to manage any environmental impact and minimise impact on tourism operations:
• Site quarantine to minimise risk of week, seed and pathogen introduction
• Tight control and restriction of how plant, equipment and materials were managed and stored
• Control of potential run-off
• Removal of all waste product from within the National Park
• Weekly program advice to local business interests to ensure that disruption to access to Dove Lake was minimised
• Works confined to designated area with no interference to adjacent vegetation
• Existing materials re-used wherever possible to restrict importation
• All equipment washed and cleaned prior to accessing the site
• Existing trees and vegetation protected and only trimmed as a last resort, following approval of the Park Ranger
• Silt fences erected to prevent materials migrating into adjacent areas
• All employees required to comply with stringent waste management conditions
The project was highly successful and received the highly coveted National CASE Earth Award.
