On the Thursday, 25 February 2010 Member for Gippsland South and Leader of The Nationals Peter Ryan spoke in the Legislative Assembly adjournment debate on the Bald Hills wind farm about the Government’s decision to increase the height of the planned Bald Hills wind turbines by 25 meters without any community consultation.
WIND FARMS: PLANNING PERMITS
Mr RYAN (Leader of The Nationals) -- I wish to raise an issue for the Minister for Planning in relation to the Bald Hills wind farm which is proposed to be constructed at a site near Tarwin Lower, about 10 kilometres away from that town. The action I seek from the minister is to revoke the approval he has recently granted to Mitsui Australia, the company which is developing the wind farm. That approval is to increase the height of the turbines proposed to be built from 110 metres to 135 metres. My further request to the minister is that a supplementary environment effects statement be conducted so people have an opportunity to properly investigate the implications behind what Mitsui wants to do.
This is a project of some 52 turbines. It was approved after a process which was trenchantly opposed and bitterly contested by the people of South Gippsland. That approval was granted in 2006. There was a lot of talk at the time about issues of natural justice. What has happened now is that the minister, in response to a request from Mitsui, has granted an approval without consulting the local people with regard to this fundamental change to the scope of the project. The same government, which intervened in the original planning process back in 2006 or thereabouts and which sought on the basis of natural justice among other things to have this project approved, has now secretly given approval to the developer about an aspect of this initiative which is absolutely basic to its construction.
Of course, this is more of the same from the government where deceit and secrecy have become tools of trade.
It is all the more unfortunate that this should happen in an area adjoining the desalination plant site where we have seen too much of this occurring over the past couple of years.
Quite understandably local people are outraged. I have had correspondence from Andrew Chapman, Dr Geoff Mosley, John and Suzanne Brandenberger, Jenny O'Sullivan, Don Fairbrother and others. In the course of the letter Don has sent to me, he summarises the situation pretty well. In his note of 12 February he says:
Therefore -- --
and this is on the basis that approval proceeds --
... aviation rules come into play.
Lights on towers and floodlit perimeter similar to the Waubra wind farm. This will turn the rural outlook into a lit-up industrial site 10 kilometres long.
Labor Party members laugh because it is all just cannon fodder for them. For the people who live in this lovely area and who delight in the magnificence of Bald Hills this matters immensely, and that the Brumby government should allow this to happen is absolutely disgraceful. I ask the minister to intervene to address this terrible injustice.
Media contact: Ben Bulmer (03) 5144 1987
