The expansion of the city’s rail network through the Metro Tunnel will not only connect Melburnians with jobs and services in a sustainable way – it also provides an opportunity to leave a positive legacy for our city.

And legacy is at the heart of sustainability – it’s about making sure that we meet our needs today, while protecting the opportunity for future generations to meet theirs.

That is why sustainability was a core focus during the planning and concept design phases of the Metro Tunnel Project, and continues to underpin our work during delivery.

We’re committed to delivering a Metro Tunnel that demonstrates excellence in environmental, social and economic sustainability.

Our sustainability commitments

Three core sustainability commitments underpin the Metro Tunnel Project to ensure it delivers a positive legacy for our city.

Environmental sustainability

We’re working to minimise the environmental impacts of the Metro Tunnel and help build Melbourne’s climate change resilience.

Social sustainability

We’re minimising and managing potential impacts of the Metro Tunnel on local communities to ensure it makes a positive contribution to Melbourne’s social fabric.

Economic sustainability

The Metro Tunnel will support a resilient and prosperous economy that offers opportunities for all.

Sustainability themes

We have a number of key sustainability themes and initiatives, which will guide the delivery and day-to-day operation of the Metro Tunnel and the five new underground stations.

Our sustainability initiatives are designed to ensure that sustainability outcomes are achievable and measurable, and align with the sustainability rating tools adopted by the project.

The themes include:

• excellence
• urban ecology and vegetation
• climate resilience
• supply chain
• communities
• workforce
• energy
• materials and waste
• water.

Collaboration

The Metro Tunnel Project is an opportunity to collaborate with project partners to develop new approaches and new ways of thinking.

Our project partners include local community groups, education, training and research institutions, as well as leading industry groups and business organisations. They’re working with us to provide expertise, share knowledge and pool resources in project problem solving and planning.

Combined, we’re driving new approaches and we’ll set new sustainability benchmarks to extend industry best practice. Our meaningful engagement with local communities will help strengthen a sense of ‘place’, with local communities actively contributing to project planning to get the best result for their local area.

Implementation and monitoring

Managing sustainability

Our comprehensive approach to managing sustainability ensures that sustainability requirements are integrated into the Metro Tunnel Project’s deliverables and activities. We’re requiring all delivery partners to develop their own sustainability management systems and, importantly, outline how they’ll meet the project’s sustainability targets and wider initiatives.

Sustainability coordination

The Metro Tunnel Project is leading a sustainability coordination subcommittee, which includes representatives from delivery partners and the operator. This group shares knowledge and works to ensure sustainability is implemented across the project.

Sustainability rating tools

Another way we’re ensuring sustainability outcomes are delivered is by applying leading sustainability rating tools to the project. These include the Infrastructure Sustainability Council of Australia (ISCA)’s IS Rating Scheme Tool, and the Green Building Council of Australia's (GBCA) custom Green Star Tool. These will set critical benchmarks to monitor and measure the sustainability performance of the Metro Tunnel Project against sustainability requirements.