Western Sydney Airport has announced that construction crews will be reusing sandstone taken from Sydney Metro tunnels to help build the new international air travel hub.
Over 500,000 tonnes of sandstone will be brought to the Badgerys Creek site in south-western Sydney from the sites of the Metro tunnelling project, which is also in its early stages.
“This high-quality sandstone will be used as a high-strength foundation to support the construction of the runway, taxiways and roads on site,” said Western Sydney Airport Chief Executive Officer Graham Millett.
“This is a great example of how we can make the most of Sydney’s infrastructure boom to not only save taxpayer funds but also cut down on waste. It’s about sustainability and efficiency, reusing resources and reducing carbon emissions.”
148,000 tonnes of sandstone have already been moved to the airport site, which has also seen 1 million cubic metres of earth moved in what Millett called “one of the biggest earthmoving challenges in Australian history”.
Sydney Metro is aiming to reuse all of the rock excavated by the tunnel boring machines in the twin 15.5-kilometre passageways, which are halfway to being completed.
Western Sydney International is set to open its doors to passengers in 2026.
