Hills of Gold Wind Farm

I have lived and visited the area of Nundle many times of the past 12 years. I believe the wind farms will not be unsightly to the community and will in fact create some interest. Where I currently work the mines are visible from the highway and are very unsightly. I believe in green energy, we can not burn coal forever. It should also create long term employment for a small community.

I am in full support of the Hills of Gold Wind Farm as I fully support creating employment. I have worked in the Nundle area regularly for the past 3 years and look forward to the opportunity for more work to help support me and my family. I love supporting the local businesses in the community. I've seen wind farms in Victoria on flat land coinciding with sheep, cattle and farming country. This is the way forward for sustainable energy.

My submission is attached

I support the wind farm as wind farms are a major start to a sustainable future in creating energy. In my opinion sustainable energy supersedes peoples negative views. I believe it is important to support wind farms into the future, power plants are dying and won't last forever.

Wind farms are a way of the future. I live in a coal mining community and see the negative impacts it has on the environment and view. I don't think the wind farm will be anything like that in comparison.

I believe it will have an negative impact on the environmental and aesthetics of this region. I have been coming to this area to visit friends for 10 years and do not wish to see this area compromised

I support green energy for the future generation. I would visit Nundle just to show my family the wind farms as I am interested in seeing them working. Great to think they will support the Nundle small community by creating more employment.

I am self employed and have worked in the Nundle area for approx 20 years. I also visit on a social basis. I am in full support of the Wind Farm project going ahead. I look forward to gaining more employment and visiting Nundle on a more regular basis.

Our family lives in Tamworth, and we frequently visit Nundle, Hanging Rock, Head of the Peel and the forests and other areas in the vicinity. It is our favourite area for many activities in such a pristine and interesting area. We are regular visitors for mountain bike riding, camping and picnicking, horse riding, forest drives and exploring, visits to Nundle town and hotel.
We are most concerned about the wind farm being located around the hills of Nundle. We are fully supportive of renewable energy generation and wind farms. But we feel most strongly that the area proposed is not appropriate and will have a large adverse effect on the area.
ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE
Damage to the environment of an iconic and pristine area at the head of the Peel River catchment – a lot has already occurred and more is going to happen –
· Clearing of extensive areas of trees and native vegetation. This is probably illegal, or at best could only be justified on spurious and meaningless grounds.
· Erosion of the tops of the hills and siltation of pristine creeks below will be the result of this.
· Damming of the springs and waterways – catching and preventing continuous low flows which are critical to the creeks and environment, but also stock and other uses below.
· Other environmental effects of roads, construction, traffic, hauling the towers into and through this pristine area surrounded by national parks and forestry.
ALTERNATIVES
Alternative locations would be available on the top of the range to take advantage of the winds where they are not located in such a pristine area and could be much more easily accessed and wind towers constructed.
The road heading east from Nundle follows the top of the range falling off to the coast on one side and the western rivers on the other. This area is all forestry and on a constructed road. It seems that this would be a much more appropriate location than the “Head of the Peel".
COMMUNITY
Angst and division within the community has become a major issue in the town and area.
I cannot believe the claims about the benefits to Nundle and jobs created in the longer term. Limited maintenance by specialists visiting the area does not do much for the town, and is it worth it.
Any benefits could be gained otherwise by placing the wind turbine forest in a more appropriate area.
SUMMARY
There is so much going for Nundle region as an area of interest for the dams, forests, pristine rivers.
Hundreds of wind turbines dominating the skyline with roads and construction traffic, environmental effects on the catchment and rivers, and other effects on the town and community, cannot fail to have a significant effect on the ambience and enjoyment of the area. The benefits on jobs and Nundle will be minimal.
I can’t believe that such a wind farm will surround the hills of Nundle, when I feel that there are other more appropriate areas nearby along the top of the range and in the forests where they could be located.

I wish to object to the project as i am a tourism operator and a member of the NBTMG INC. and the marketing imagery we use is the mountain range where the proposed wind farm is going. It has been used all over our past and current advertising campaigns and is on the front cover of our Nundle brochure which we hand out thousands of people and is spread out through information centres. Attached is the brochure and the image is the first thing you see on the Nundle website www.nundle.com.au
We will lose this imagery for the life of the project and the view as you drive into Nundle will be ruined by this mechanical monstrosity.
The mountain range is a huge draw card for Nundle.

We own Fossickers Tourist Park in Nundle and we are worried about the amount of traffic movements that will be taking place. Many of our guests use the New England Highway to come in and out of Nundle and i am worried they will avoid Nundle for 2-3 years as the project is being built because of the volume of traffic. They will also have to deal with the traffic in the town as they walk to the attractions or go and explore the area.

When the town is busy it is hard enough to get a park and with parking being taken away people will not stop they will get frustrated and just keep going to the next town.
We get a lot of people from the Tamworth area and i think they will not come while the project is being built because of the congestion our roads will have leading in and out of Nundle.

We also have a daughter with Down Syndrome and she works and does volunteering in Nundle and walks to these places which she can do so as Nundle is a small town and the amount of normal traffic is ok. With the increased traffic and a lot being heavy machinery she will struggle to be able to do so safely by herself as she does now, Her independence is a major part of her life and is a major goal for her succeeding to be independent in the future.

I also think the destruction of the area's environment to put up the wind farm does not make sense. Destroy the environment to save the environment.
The significance of the area as a water source for the Murray - Darling catchment, Hunter River catchment and Manning River catchment which comes from the mountain range in the submission. Is it going to be a horror story in years to come as these systems could be destroyed?
I don't think the benefit of the wind farm will out way the cost to the environment and the cost to the town of Nundle.

Thank you for the opportunity for us to be able to put our concerns forward.
Regards

Heath Atchison

I am attaching my submission.

I am strongly in favour of the Windfarm Project proposed for Nundle/Hanging Rock.
I live on a property and believe the windfarm will create employment, in turn a bigger population therefore children at our school and more beneficial facilities for our town with the funding.

I write this brief submission to state my firm support for the Hills of Gold Wind Farm proposal. The establishment of the wind farm will provide a major boost to the villages of Nundle, Hanging Rock, Crawney and surrounds. The project has the potential to boost positive economic, environmental and social growth in the region. This project will inject a much needed change of community leadership as new people come to the region and bring with them new and varied experiences to share in the community. As a business owner I fully welcome the project as I see the immense amount of benefit and look forward to the positive influences the project will bring with it. I simply say bring it on!

This project can only be beneficial to the area. From what I have read and heard, this project will give the area an injection of funds and employment, that it has never seen before. I have travelled through the area on several occasions but have never really stayed for any length of time. This project can change this, and make the area a real tourist attraction. It appears to be a massive opportunity that would be tragically lost, if it were not to proceed.

Ruins the landscape.

My husband and I visit the Trundle area because of its pristine rural features, we DON'T want to see gigantic ugly wind turbines blocking up the scenery. The entire area will lose its charm and tourist trade. Wind Turbines are dangerous to human health and the bird wildlife, they're not majestic they are ugly and dangerous. Please stop this project.

RE: HILLS OF GOLD WIND FARM APPLICATION NO. SSD 9679
SUBMISSION FOR OBJECTION

Background
As a permanent resident of Hanging Rock for over 10 years and a committed regular visitor, often for extended stays and frequently with other visitors, for almost 35years prior to becoming a resident I am here purely for Love of Country therefore I make this submission from the heart.
I have travelled overseas (took 15 months to get from Sydney to London) and seen much of Australia, mostly by land, I have seen beautiful places but Hanging Rock is my “soul” country.
I have no vested financial or political interests in my opposition to this project.
My consciousness of environmental issues was raised 45years ago by an amazing woman whose property at Hanging Rock I stayed on until 4 years ago. Dr Corona Adams, now deceased, quit her medical practice around 50 years ago to live on the land full time and to do this with the lightest of footprints, she milked a few goats, ran an organic property, lived off the grid (no generator or solar), and was the founding president of the Henry Doubleday Society (they promoted organic and comfrey).
I have First Nation heritage, Wiradjuri language, and although strictly speaking this is not my country I do feel a love and connection to this landscape as though it is in my blood to care for and protect this country.

Destructive Impact on Country
Hanging Rock is fringe country, not as rural as the Nundle area and not fully in the bush but that bush is “just there”, here you can see wilderness, you can feel wilderness, you can smell wilderness, all with relative ease, don’t need a 4wheel drive vehicle or to trek for hours. Hanging Rock offers us a wonderful sense of awe. I get that sense of awe from the views, the road into Nundle, Nundle itself and its surrounds, the drive up to Hanging Rock provide those views. A visit to Sheba Dam or to Arc de Circ Trout Farm, a walk or just driving further on are for me awesome experiences. Well publicised research acknowledges the significance to our wellbeing, physically and emotionally, contact with wilderness is. Wind turbines, being technology not Nature, will visually and audially detract from (possibly invalidate) the awe/joy/pleasure Hanging Rock gives to me and I believe many others, now and in the future.
My frequent visits to Hanging Rock over a 35year period sustained me for a busy, even hectic, and stressful lifestyle in Sydney. My holidays spent in a slab hut, off the grid, rejuvenated me. Hanging Rock is a special place.
My biologic daughter, grandchildren and non-biologic daughter (foster care placement from the age of 2years, also First Nation, Kunjun language from Kowanyama) are in Sydney for employment but they too experience the awe and rejuvenation from Hanging Rock and want the essence of this place to be preserved for themselves, their children and grandchildren. As do many of the visitors I have introduced to Hanging Rock such as 15year old young First Nations woman who lives in busy Newton in inner west Sydney, first came with me to Hanging Rock as a baby and now comes almost every school holiday. She is rejuvenated by Hanging Rock, by nature, by the bush. She is concerned about the turbines.
The magic of this place needs to be respected, protected not vandalised by the construction and presence of turbines.

Renewable Energy Needs to be Environmentally Sensitive
I have seen a lot Australia from the road, I guess there must be hundreds of thousand, maybe millions of hectares of land virtually denuded, minimal native flora or fauna left, overrun by invasive exotic weeds surely such landscapes are where Turbines (or Solar installations) could be placed. Minimal environmental impact on construction and the, what I view as a bribe, community payment of $2,500 per turbine be used to rehabilitate the environment. True Green energy. Could be a win-win situation.
We need our energy to be renewable but surely if lessons from the past show us anything it is to respect and move cautiously with our environment. We also need our trees and all that live with and around them. This is even more so since the bush fires and drought conditions last summer, Australia lost more that 20% of its forests during the fires last summer. We cannot lose more trees. All options need to be considered in depth before any tree is removed.
Hundreds of trees are planned to be removed for the turbine sites, lines and access roads at Hanging Rock. The proposed turbine project amounts to vandalism of Beautiful, Much Loved Country.

Fire Risk
The turbines height will restrict the use of air support during any fires. From the photo montage a number of turbines are to be placed on the boundary of Ben Halls Gap National Park (a closed reserve). Last summer there was an “Out of Control” fire in the National Park, with limited access use of air support was essential.
Should another fire break out if there are turbines restricting air support to fight the fire not only could the Hanging Rock village be destroyed but also thousands of hectares of bushland. In a situation such as this there would be grounds for litigation (perhaps even your department would share liability).

Community Disharmony
The proposed turbine project has caused a great deal of conflict and disharmony in our community. The proposed project has split the community into three groups, those against, those for and those on the fence or uncommitted or afraid of conflict. It has had a negative impact on our day to day life, disrupted various community organisations and activities, broken down many relationship, shattered our cohesiveness. We (Nundle and Hanging Rock) are a small community of around 300 people. There is only 1 general store, 1 garage, 1 pub. We are vulnerable to floods and fire. We rely on first Responders for medical emergencies (takes more than an hour for an ambulance to get here). WE NEED TO GET ALONG. WE NEED TO CO-OPERATE AND SUPPORT ONE ANOTHER IN AN EMERGENCY.

Damage to the Fauna and Flora
Rare trees and animals will be negatively impacted by the construction and placement of the turbines. With the climate crisis we are facing, the recent bush fires and risk of fire in the future all human activities need to be super sensitive to our environment. We can not afford to put any of our native fauna and flora at risk. I am particularly concerned about the raptors, with turbines on a ridge over- looking low lying land birds of prey face unavoidable slaughter, they at risk with turbines anywhere but way more because of the type of landscape the project has chosen.


Negative Impact of Light Pollution on Night Sky
The light from the turbines will cause a reduction in the visibility of the stars at night. Tragic.

Water Risk
I am no hydrologist but some of the old fellows (born and bred here, walked the country, “know every rock and blade of grass” type fellows) around here say that the concrete base of the turbines will affect the spring water. The hills here are full of springs, Sheba Dam is fed by two springs, the local Trout farm is fed by spring water. Any reduction, negative impact of spring water is a risk not worth taking as our climate warms. Water from here feeds the Peel River, last summer the river suffered during the drought. We cannot afford to risk the water.

The Negative Power of Money
All this has come about because of one property owner thought it a good idea. Most of the turbines would be on his property and therefore he would receive significant financial benefits. He and the group he has brought in to put forward this proposal have exaggerated benefits to the community and used the power of money to “market” the project. Simplistic slogans and financial rewards have exploited the fears of climate change of a section of the community. Like colonisers this group has come to the community with their money, so much money and are here to exploit and make lots of money but make out that is for our benefit. They have corrupted the “Hills of Gold” title, a name that depicted the history (gold mining in the 1860s) and the view of the hills at sunset when they can look golden.
Profit as the only motive is how we have gotten into the environmental crisis we are facing. We need to take the environment into consideration. For the current residents and visitors and for the people of the future the place needs to be preserved. Our society needs places like this, for wellbeing, for clean air.

I object to the hills of gold wind farm because I am very concerned about the tragic impact to the village of Hanging Rock and my property in particular. I don’t know how wide are the components they will have to bring through here. Nobody have ever spoken to us and a lot of older people don’t have computers. My house is only 5 meters from the edge of the tar on the road. Will they need to knock my house down?? My property is the closest to the road of all the properties on the transport route. I’d like some answers as you might understand things like this can cause people a lot of worry.

I have been suffering from the sleep apnea for over a decade. The traffic noise needs to be properly addressed when it comes to coming through the village. This is an old area and houses are built close to roads as people used to travel on horses. My house was once a shop and a post office, that’s why it is the closest.

I don’t like the community division this project has created. Friends don’t talk to friends anymore.

We don’t know who owns the project as the ownership keeps changing. I don’t appreciate seeing overseas companies having ownership of Australian assets.

I feel it’s wrong that we can’t access the Ben Halls reserve because it’s locked up for scientific purposes, but the wind farm people can go and disturb the area, and possibly introduce weeds and pests to the reserve. I always wanted to take my kids to the reserve, but we respect that it’s something that needs to be left alone and untouched.

My family and I have visited Nundle a number of times and we are always enchanted by its natural beauty, old world charm and relaxed way of life. We can easily understand why this much-loved tourist destination is at the top of the the list of places to visit in the New England area of New South Wales.
I think it would be disastrous for approval to be given to a wind farm on this mountain range. Our lives are continually being impacted by over development. There are some areas that need to be left for future generations to enjoy.
Equally, the perception that economic drivers are the best benchmark in determining what a tight-knit community needs is misplaced. The social and environmental linkages that are at the core of this community must be considered for the long-term health and prosperity of the area.
Please leave the Hills of Gold untouched for future generations to enjoy.

To whom it may concern,

I object to the Hills of Gold Wind Farm proposal in Nundle.

The proposal impacts the daily lives of residents within the Nundle community already as they are fighting to preserve their beautiful town. People and their livelihoods are not being considered. The community for many years now have been under significant stress sharing their objection to this proposal and their voices need to be heard.

People do not live in a country town renowned for it's peaceful vista to look out over their properties to see a large wind farm line the horizon. The developers have presented images representing what the proposal will look like. I have been responsible for marketing in businesses and it is evident the angles and perspective being used to represent their proposal to hide the true impact. I challenge anyone to take photos of the proposed area and make real life - to scale- representations. We live in a world where information is swayed by associations and is not always accurate. It is important that decisions are made based upon accurate, reliable information that represents integrity and not financial motivations.

The proposal will not only impact the lives of the people but significantly impact the environment. Wind farms cause regular death of birds and also deters wildlife on the ground. We acknowledge the Aboriginal Custodians of the land and yet we build monstrosities that show our lack of respect for the land. When you review the sheer size, amount and positioning of the wind farm it is easy to see that this is not the town for this development. The motivation for this development is not coming from doing the right thing by the community, the environment nor the people who come to enjoy this unique little country town. This is the wrong town for a wind farm and I encourage yourselves to please put the people first. Let the voices of the town be heard.

The proposal will have a significant impact on tourism as people go to Nundle to be in the peace and quiet of the country and to discover the beauty and history of this land. They come here to wander the streets, sit and watch the world go by whilst looking at the land and to fossick. These attributes of this beautiful town need to be protected. The proposed wind farm will destroy these features, leaving a line of large white wind turbines lining the land. The wind farm will cause permanent damage to so many people that can not be undone. The mental health of this town is being impacted by a financial agenda.

The Hills of Gold Wind Farm will impact the people of Nundle daily, the number of tourists, the environment and change the town with negative lasting effects.

Save Nundle from the Wind Farm Proposal and show the people that they matter. That the everyday Aussie counts. These Aussie values and actions need to make a return in our Country. Why is it that one person's agenda can be allowed to destroy the lives of so many? Of a happy town that was cohesive and happy and now struggling daily due to this proposal.

I strongly object to this proposal. People before money. Your decision can show this country that Aussie's count. It will show developers that we all care about our countryside and that money is not more important than people and our land.