About the EIS
As a Critical State Significant Infrastructure (CSSI) project, HumeLink is following a comprehensive Commonwealth and State environmental assessment process. This acknowledges that CSSI projects are large and complex, and can have major economic, environmental, and social impacts.
As part of the planning approval process, HumeLink was required to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). An EIS identifies and assesses the potential environmental, economic and social impacts of the project to help government agencies, relevant authorities, community and stakeholders to make an informed decision or provide an informed submission on the merits of the project.
The EIS is assessed by the NSW Government and Commonwealth Government before a determination on the project is made.
Public exhibition
On 30 August 2023, the HumeLink EIS was lodged with the Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI) – formerly known as the Department of Planning and Environment (DPE) – and placed on public exhibition until Tuesday 10 October 2023.
The public exhibition enabled the community to read the EIS document, seek clarification and provide DPHI with direct feedback via a formal submission.
The main body of the EIS and the associated specialist studies were available online through the NSW Major Project Planning Portal. Printed copies of the main body of the EIS were also available during the exhibition period at select community libraries across the project footprint and available to be posted to landowners upon request.
An interactive digital EIS also presented key information to support better understanding of the project’s EIS.
The HumeLink project team held 22 community information sessions across the project footprint and three webinars during the exhibition period. We also visited landowners with our Remote Access Community Hub (RACH), held additional sessions for Community Consultative Group members, and promoted our activities extensively across local media, in our newsletters and updates.
More than 150 submissions were received during the public exhibition and will be used to guide the project’s final determination and any conditions of approval. All submissions received are available on DPHI's website and have been shared with Transgrid.