Invitation for submissions
Revised draft environmental impact statement
Inland Rail – Border to Gowrie project,
located between the New South Wales/Queensland border, near Yelarbon, to Gowrie Junction,
north-west of Toowoomba, Queensland
Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) proposes to develop the Inland Rail – Border to Gowrie (B2G) project. The B2G project is part of the overall inland rail program between Melbourne and Brisbane via regional Victoria, New South Wales and Toowoomba. The B2G project is one of four inland rail corridor sections proposed in Queensland. The B2G project would be located between the New South Wales - Queensland border, near Yelarbon, to Gowrie Junction, north-west of Toowoomba in Queensland.
The B2G project would link the proposed Inland Rail – North Star to Border project in New South
Wales and the Inland Rail – Gowrie to Helidon project in Queensland.
The B2G project would involve:
• 217.48 kilometre freight railway line, including 149.48 kilometres of new track
and 68 kilometres of upgraded track to accommodate double stack freight trains
up to 1800 metres long
• construction of box and pipe culverts, 37 bridges and five crossing loops
• construction of a temporary material distribution centre and laydown facility,
two non-resident workforce accommodation sites, fuel storage sites and borrow pits
• ancillary works including road and public utility crossings and realignments, modification
to the Yelarbon levee.
Once constructed, the railway will be operated by the ARTC. Inland Rail Pty Ltd (IRPL) is a
wholly owned subsidiary of ARTC, established in May 2024 to build Inland Rail on behalf
of the Australian Government.
The Coordinator-General declared the B2G project a ‘coordinated project’, under section 26(1)(b)
of the State Development and Public Works Organisation Act 1971 (Qld), triggering the requirement
for an environmental impact statement (EIS).
At the request of the Coordinator-General, IRPL has prepared a revised draft EIS, to address matters raised in submissions on the draft EIS, which was released for comment from 23 January 2021 to
4 May 2021. You are invited to comment on the revised draft EIS. The Coordinator-General will consider all submissions as part of the evaluation.
On the 9 April 2018, a delegate for the Australian Government Minister for Environment and Water determined that the B2G project is likely to have a significant impact upon matters of national environmental significance and will require approval under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) (EPBC Act) before it can proceed (EPBC Act reference: 2018/8165). The controlling provision include listed threatened species and communities
(sections 18 and 18A of the EPBC Act). The Coordinator-General’s EIS evaluation report
will be provided to the Australian Minister.
How to make a submission
Submissions on the revised draft EIS are invited from Monday 12 May 2025 to Monday 7 July 2025. For information about making a submission to the Coordinator-General, please refer to the fact sheet Have your say on a revised draft environmental impact statement and accompanying submission form, available online and at the public display locations listed below.
The revised draft EIS is available to view online from Saturday 10 May 2025 to Monday 7 July 2025 at https://www.statedevelopment.qld.gov.au/inlandrail-b2g." target="_blank" rel="nofollow">https://www.statedevelopment.qld.gov.au/inlandrail-b2g. A copy is also available from the proponent via telephone 1800 732... or email inlandrailqld@inlandrail.com.au. If you need help reading the revised draft EIS, or if English is your second language, please call 131 450. This free service will help you read and understand the revised draft EIS and other relevant project information.
An electronic copy of the revised draft EIS will be available to view between 10 May 2025 and 7 July 2025 at the following venues, during business hours:
• Goondiwindi Inland Rail office, 28 Marshall Street, Goondiwindi, QLD
• Goondiwindi Library, Regional Civic Centre, 100 Marshall Street, Goondiwindi, QLD
• Inglewood Library, 18 Elizabeth Street, Inglewood, QLD
• Millmerran Service Centre, 2-16 Campbell Street, Millmerran, QLD
• National Library of Australia, Parkes Place W, Canberra, ACT
• Pittsworth Library, 104 Yandilla Street, Pittsworth, QLD
• State Library of Queensland, Cultural Centre, Stanley Place, South Brisbane, QLD
• Toowoomba City Library, 155 Herries Street, Toowoomba, QLD
• Toowoomba Inland Rail office, 143-145 Margaret Street, Toowoomba, QLD.
A printed copy will be available to view at IRPL’s Toowoomba Office located at 143-145 Margaret Street, Toowoomba, and IRPL’s Goondiwindi Office located at 28 Marshall Street, Goondiwindi.
Send your submission to the Coordinator-General using one of the following methods:
Online: https://www.statedevelopment.qld.gov.au/inlandrail-b2g
Email: inlandrailb2g@coordinatorgeneral.qld.gov.au
Post: Attention: The Coordinator-General
c/- EIS
Project Manager, Inland Rail – Border to Gowrie project
Office of the Coordinator-General
PO Box 15517
City East Qld 4002 Australia
SUBMISSIONS CLOSE ON MONDAY 7 JULY 2025
Notes: While you are encouraged to use the submission form, it is not mandatory. Your submission, including any personal information you provide in connection with your submission, may be disclosed by the Coordinator-General
to the project proponent and local, state and Australian government agencies. Your personal information will otherwise be dealt with in accordance with the Information Privacy Act 2009 (Qld). If you have special communication needs, telephone the EIS project manager on 1800 001... to make alternative submission arrangements.
Brisbane 4000
