Inland Rail launches sixth Annual Sustainability Report
Inland Rail has published its sixth Annual Sustainability Report, showcasing the positive social, environmental, and economic outcomes Inland Rail and its project delivery partners have achieved in the 2023-24 financial year.
March 26, 2025
Annual Sustainability Report 2023-2024
This is the sixth annual sustainability report for Inland Rail, reporting on environmental, social and economic benefits realised during the 2023-2024 financial year and progress against key sustainability objectives and targets.
Click the ‘Download’ button, below, to access a PDF version of the report.
The report also outlines Inland Rail’s sustainability priorities, achievements and how it strives to create a sustainable asset through innovation to go beyond regulatory requirements.
The objectives and targets in the Inland Rail Sustainability Strategy provide the framework for reporting on our annual progress and are reviewed annually in response to evolving considerations like changing community expectations and new industry benchmarks.
The Strategy includes seven objectives and associated targets: leadership and awareness; governance; community and economy; environment and heritage; resource use; sustainable procurement; and future operations.
These targets, while discrete, link together to form Inland Rail’s unified approach to sustainability.
The report confirms Inland Rail has continued to minimise impacts and generate benefits through a wide range of environmental, social, cultural, and economic initiatives.
To date, the Inland Rail Program has achieved a 37% reduction in water demand compared to base case; is tracking at 18% of materials that contain recycled content or have a low embodied impact and has achieved a 38% reduction in greenhouse emissions.
FY 2023-24 Annual Sustainability Report highlights.
On the Narrabri to North Star Phase 1 section, which was completed during FY24, 20,000 tonnes of steel were salvaged for future use, including reuse in other rail bridge projects.
Additional steel and other materials were donated to construction projects in New South Wales and Queensland, and to local community groups – the pins connecting sections of track were given to the local Moree Men’s Shed, with this rail ‘jewellery’ used by members to create hat and coat racks.
Ecological enhancement is tracking at 52%, with initiatives such as:
- Installing nesting boxes for native birds, bats and marsupial species near the Seymour-Avenel Road project site
- Working with the Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority to improve the habitat for fish species, including the endangered Macquarie perch, Trout cod, and Murray cod.
In line with our goals, Inland Rail is well on the way to achieving a Program-wide ‘Excellent’ Infrastructure Sustainability (IS) rating, a rating already achieved by the Parkes to Narromine project (As Built), the Narrabri to North Star Phase 1 project (Design) and Stockinbingal to Parkes project (Design).
These independent IS ratings provide respected third-party assurance that our sustainability claims are genuine and that we’re delivering sustainable rail infrastructure which has very real and positive benefits for the communities in which we work.
Inland Rail Program continues to be a pacesetter for sustainability within the rail industry and infrastructure sector in Australia. This report reflects once again that with the right people, vision, values, and strategy Inland Rail can continue to reduce impacts while connecting Australia by improving our freight network.
Stephen Jones, Inland Rail Executive Director of Health, Safety, Environment and Sustainability, said:
“With a project as significant as Inland Rail, it provides the opportunity for innovation that enables real legacy outcomes to be achieved, underpinned by our values that it is the responsibility of each and every team member to keep sustainability at the forefront of everything we do.
“From little things such as remembering to drop waste paper into the proper recycling bin, to the big items such as reusing tonnes of spoil from a project site, these all add up to ensure we are working smarter to deliver meaningful outcomes.
“I am delighted to see the FY23-24 Annual Sustainability Report has highlighted the care that we all take to ensure the Inland Rail project leaves a legacy of which we can all be proud.
“This report is part of our overall journey with us continuing to challenge ourselves to set standards that drive smarter ways of working to benefit our people and communities, environment and economic outcomes.”
CAPTION: Stephen Jones, Inland Rail Executive Director of Health, Safety, Environment and Sustainability, says the sixth Inland Rail Annual Sustainability Report emphasises how Inland Rail strives to keep sustainability at the forefront of all aspects of the project.
