EP Risk was engaged for occupational hygiene and environmental services during the Stage 1C basement civil works for the high-profile Crown Sydney development at Barangaroo. A condition of the Environment Protection Licence, or EPL, required air monitoring because the onsite fill contained asbestos, coal tar hydrocarbons, and heavy metals from the former gasworks.

The Management Plan stipulated monitoring for harmful gases, including VOC, NO, NO₂, NOx, SO, SO₂, H₂S, CO, and CO₂. Dust and particulate matter (PM) monitoring for diesel particles, PM_2.5, and PM₁₀ was also specified. Due to confined space conditions, the air monitoring system needed to be compact and easily relocatable as excavation progressed. Data transmission was challenging due to the lack of cellular service underground. Meeting these challenges required an innovative approach.

The EPL cited Aeroqual as an approved method for air quality monitoring. Therefore, EP Risk installed two AQM65 stations configured with multi-channel PM and gas modules. One station measured ambient air, and the other monitored air quality underground. A Wi-Fi intranet sent data from the stations to Aeroqual Cloud for comparative analysis and reporting. Real-time exceedance alerts provided early warning for safety and mitigation actions.

Crown Sydney, the tallest building in the city and a major landmark, was finished in 2020. “Taking a cutting-edge approach to air monitoring minimised risks to people,” said EP Risk’s James Thompson, Senior Associate Occupational Hygienist. “At EP Risk, we leveraged Aeroqual’s system to combine all the air measurements into a compact, relocatable package. The software presented all data in one easily accessible dashboard. SMS and email alerts issued by the alarm system helped us to comply with the project’s environmental, health, and safety requirements.”