Local planning issues

The Palerang Council's Local Environmental Plan states:

Consent may be granted to the carrying out of development on or near any ridgeline visible from any public road only if, in the opinion of the consent authority, the development is not likely to detract from the visual amenity of the rural area and is not in conflict with the community interest.

The proposed wind farm will be highly visible from the local area, from many parts of Queanbeyan and Canberra. It will detract from the visual amenity of the rural residential areas surrounding it.

If a private individual proposed building as much as a shed such a prominent ridgeline, the Palerang Council would be bound by its own planning rules to reject the application. How can is 60, 120-metre tall wind towers perched on top of prominent ridgelines comply with these same planning rules?

Pictured: A photo-montage of the wind turbines on top of the Molonglo Ridge. Dominating the landscape, these turbines will be seen and heard for kilometres on both sides of the ridges. [Click on image for an enlarged view].

Palerang Council rejects further wind monitoring towers

In May 2005, the Palerang Council unanimously rejected EHN's application for further wind monitoring towers on the Molonglo Ridge. The council had previously adopted a policy of rejecting wind farms on rural residential areas or in rural areas where the towers would be close to existing houses (Council upholds wind farm policy, Bungendore Mirror, 18 May 2005).

In rejecting the application for additional wind monitoring towers, the council noted that there was considerable opposition to the wind farm from Palerang residents.

In March 2005, the Greater Queanbeyan City Council confirmed its objection to the Molonglo Ridge wind farm. While the council is not the consent authority for the proposal, as neighbours to the proposed development, the Council felt it should offer its opinion to the NSW Government. The turbines would be visible from many parts of the Queanbeyan City, and is only 4 kilometres from its nearest residents.

"This is an intrusion on the amenity that people have, they bought in particular areas so they wouldn't have to look at manufactured structures," said Councillor Tom Mavec. (We don't want wind farm in our backyard, says Qbn, The Canberra Times, 17 March 2005)

The role of the New South Wales government

In December 2004, the New South Wales government decided that all wind farm proposals over 60 megawatts are considered to be projects of "State significance" and will be subject to approval by the Department of Infrastructure Planning and Natural Resources. In other words, this development proposal will not be considered or approved the Palerang Council, it is to be referred to the New South Wales Government.

Ultimately, the project will be considered by the Minister for Planning, the Hon Frank Sartor MP.

When will the decision be made?

The developers set the following timetable, but are now embarassingly behind schedule:

March 2005	Environmental studies completed
March/April 2005	Proposed wind-plant layout and draft Environmental Impact Statement prepared
April 2005	Open Days held
May 2005	Environmental Impact Statement finalised and submitted to the NSW Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources (DIPNR)
May/June 2005	Public exhibition of EIS, submissions to DIPNR invited

The developers originally said the EIS would be available in January or February 2005. The Molonglo Landscape Guardians wrote to EHN in June 2005 requesting a revised timetable. We have received no reply or even an acknowledgement of the request.

After the EIS is submitted to DIPNR, residents and the general public will have only one month to review it, collate and prepare a response.

Even with this unreasonably tight timeline, it is vital that you submit your comments to DIPNR. You don't have to comment on every aspect of the EIS and can submit a comment or objection to any part of it.

Last Updated: 20 November, 2005