January 23, 2013
Australia
Australia
Cherry Tree Wind Farm VCAT test
Lyndal Reading | January 23, 2013 | www.weeklytimesnow.com.au
Lyndal Reading | January 23, 2013 | www.weeklytimesnow.com.au
A wind arm planning application will be tested in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal next week.
It is believed to be the first to reach VCAT since planning rules were changed by the Coalition Government.
The Coalition allowed the right of veto to homeowners whose house was within 2km of a turbine.
The 16-turbine Cherry Tree Wind Farm, by Infigen, was knocked back by Mitchell Shire last year.
It is a $100 million project with a capacity of 50 megawatts, south east of Seymour.
The hearing is due to start next Tuesday.
Friends of the Earth spokesman Cam Walker said he believed it was the first wind farm planning proposal to be heard in VCAT since the rules were changed.
BEAM Mitchell Environment Group has thrown its support behind the wind farm proposal, saying it is “well sited on already-cleared land that is some distance back from the edge of the escarpment at Trawool.”
“Like many people, we find them an interesting and attractive addition to the rural landscape and an icon for the technologies of the future.”
However, Waubra Foundation spokeswoman Dr Sarah Laurie said there was increasing evidence the wind turbines could cause illness due to infrasound.
“The usual concerns about wind farms and health are there,” Dr Laurie said.
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2013/01/23/cherry-tree-wind-farm-vcat-test/