December 27, 2019
Australia

Nundle wind farm: ‘overwhelming majority’ of residents against the proposal

Carolyn Millet | The Northern Daily Leader | December 27, 2019 | www.northerndailyleader.com.au

Nundle district residents who oppose a wind farm proposal for their area say the majority of people living there do not want the development – and they can prove it.

Members of the Hills of Gold Preservation Inc (HOGPI) group made the claim in a presentation to the last Tamworth Regional Council meeting for 2019.

They have a Justice of the Peace statutory declaration that "the majority of Nundle and Hanging Rock residents and landholders do not want wind turbines in view or hearing of people's homes or work places".

HOGPI president John Krsulja said the JP had checked petition signatures against the most recent census and found it was an "overwhelming majority" against.

"We wanted to remind council to take that opposition seriously," Mr Krsulja said.

Stakeholders have also received news of the latest decision on the potential wind farm, which would stretch from Hanging Rock to Crawney.

The proposal from Wind Energy Partners has been before the office of the federal Environment Minister, to determine whether it's a controlled action under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act.

A self-referral to the minister is made when a party proposing to take an action, such as a development, finds it could have a significant impact on National Heritage values.

In this case, the wind farm is thought likely to affect listed species, threatened ecological communities or habitat, including the koala, certain woodlands and grasslands, and the regent honeyeater. This week, the proposed wind farm has been deemed a controlled action requiring assessment and approval under the EPBC Act to ensure the project can be "performed in a manner that does not have an unacceptable impact on matters protected by the Act".

"The project will require assessment and approval under the EPBC Act before it can proceed," the decision document, dated December 23, states. The controlling provisions will be the listed threatened species and communities sections (18 and 18A); and listed migratory species sections (20 and 20A) of the act.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2019/12/27/nundle-wind-farm-overwhelming-majority-of-residents-against-the-proposal/