November 30, 2011
Australia

Wind farm firm to take permits stoush to VCAT

ABC Western Victoria, www.abc.net.au 30 November 2011

The proponent of a 15-turbine wind farm in the Moyne Shire will ask the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) to overturn a council decision against extending planning permits for the project.

The Moyne council says Nu-En Australia will have to reapply for permits for the Salt Creek Wind farm, near Woorndoo, and must comply with new shire and State Government planning guidelines.

However, the company’s managing director, Ernst Weyhausen, says the Government does not require projects that had already been given planning permission to comply with the new rules.

“The State Government said it doesn’t apply to existing permits and that existing permits can be extended through to March of next year,” he said.

“The council introduced its own policy back in August that also requires a two-kilometre exclusion zone. However, that policy was never communicated to us.”

A landowner near the proposed wind farm has supported the council’s decision to refuse an extension of time on the project’s planning permits.

David Allen says he opposes the wind farm and it should have to comply with new State Government planning guidelines.

He says residents have faced uncertainty about the project because the company has taken so long to start construction.

“We’ve had the tower up there since 2005 or 2006 and they’ve had the permit for four or five years, so they’ve had plenty of time I would have thought to make some decisions and get on with it,” he said.


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2011/11/30/wind-farm-firm-to-take-permits-stoush-to-vcat/