Hills of Gold Wind Farm

I support this motion towards creating a better, sustainable NSW.

Re: Submission Against the Proposed Hills of Gold Wind Farm
Attn: Anthony Ko.

To whom it may concern.
This submission is in relation to the Hills of Gold Windfarm Project and my objection to this. I do not hold any political affiliations nor have I made any political donations. I T.C. of 405 Shearers Road, Hanging Rock NSW 2340. I have lived here the majority of my childhood and young adulthood only leaving due to family commitments. When I became aware of the proposed windfarm I was upset and wish to submit this as my objection to the proposed windfarm.
The proposed windfarm has made no consideration for the community or the natural resources available currently in the area. Landowners most affected by this project are subject to having to locate the information or look towards other in the community who have the knowledge and understanding of such matter to convey the message to us. The majority of residents have lived there for 10+ years yet the Hills of Gold Wind Farm Project were not able to locate our addresses, owners names nor our contact methods. We were once left a piece of paper at our gate which was destroyed by rain the next day. We are contacted sporadically when the wind farm project needs something from us, but never to inform us of what is happening even though they have our contact details now. When we ask for more information we are constantly answered with he same answer, ‘let me get back to you on that one’. This is unacceptable, we are constantly kept in the dark and considered to be uneducated individuals who they wish to take advantage of. I have 2 children who regularly visit the property and enjoy what is there and a project such as this would not benefit the community. We have seen time and time again the project has not taken into consideration surrounding landholders as seen in the first proposed turbine locations being situated less than 1km from a house on Morrisons Gap Road and in clear unobstructed view which was later realised and removed. All we see from this project is how much needs to be done to facilitate this project by way of roads and construction which has not fully taken into account impact to neighbours or the ongoing impact of property de valuing and permanent ecological destruction as well as the ongoing contamination of land and water ways which has not been satisfactorily addressed.
I look towards the future for my kids and im ashamed to say a project such as this would not benefit future generations but rather hinder them and impose conditions on them and in a place where the stars can be seen at night. I am not sure why a resource such as solar can not be utilised in an areas with clear un obstructed sunlight.

Kind regards

To whom it may concern.
I am writing this in response to the proposed Hills of Gold Wind Farm and my objection to the project. I have resided at Shearers road Hanging Rock for the past 30 years and have enjoyed the beautiful landscape and wildlife it has to offer and feel approval of a project such as this would be out of character with the rural land use and would impact the natural biodiversity of the area.
After reading some of the information presented as part of this project I was concerned with the amount of clearing required to facilitate this project, such as the proposed ‘Private’ road to transport material for this project, the clearing of land to facilitate the building of these wind turbines and the likelihood that the construction of these would impact the areas natural springs and aquifers which are the lifeblood to much of the wildlife in the area as well as supply water to several farmers. During the historical droughts we experienced we were fortunate enough to have access to a spring of water which kept our dam levels high enough so we could use when our tanks ran dry. I was of the impression presented by the Wind Farm Project that the impact as a result of this project would be minimal but all I have read since this promise is how many new roads we need to build to facilitate the building of these turbines, which is expected to be for a period of 18 months in optimal conditions.
I wish to further address the impact this will have to our everyday lives, being that roads will be subject to a conditional entry and access will be prioritised to truck rather than residents. This may result in a trip to get groceries which already takes 1hr to take in excess of 2 hours waiting for access to roads to my own property.
I strongly am against these proposed windfarms and hope you listen to our voice and objections to this project. I wish to also note that no political donations have been made by myself.

Sincerely

This project is unsound financially and environmentally.

The following financial aspects of this project need to be further investigated:
1. Economically viability when government subsidies cease.
2. Economic impacts of current wind drought being experienced in the Hunter Valley what is the capacity factor with the current wind.
3. According Former Montana State Representative Daniel Zolnikov, who was head of the energy group, wind turbines on average utilise 10% of the nameplate capacity. How do the economics stack up with that kind of productivity with regards to ROI.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WC8z9GTQOYA
4. What is the total cost for MWh and how is that calculated?

Ecologically are there any unbiased studies about wildlife and livestock impact? There is now a substantial amount of testimony and videos about the impact of the wind on wildlife.

Additionally what steps are being taken to reduce the infrasound impact on the people and animals?

What unbiased studies are there being utilised to provide an true and accurate representation of the short and long term impacts of the wind turbines?

Is there a process for recycle or manage the turbine blades waste products that do not involve leaving them on the ground or somehow storing them in landfills and taking up substantial space?

What guarantee in place to insure that the windfarm site is actually rehabilitated at the end of its lifecycle? What kind of bonds or protections are in place to stop companies from declaring bankruptcy prior to rehabilitation to defer those costs?

What is stopping foreign companies from purchasing these farms once developed and then walking away leaving the site not rehabilitated?

What is the short and long term effect on the existing power infrastructure?
What upgrades are being made to ensure that the power grid stability is maintained?

This video is a testimony about local farms and the damage the turbines has done to their lives and livelihood. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bwt3c6c4UoE

What is being done about the predatory tactics by the windfarm developers with regards to virtual entrapment through non-disclosures within contracts with local unsuspecting landowners?

Considering that a large proportion of the legislation has been driven by the developers and owners of windfarms, how can we expect to have a fair and unbiased representation during this process?

As I have stated above there are too many negatives and not enough positives to offset the negatives. The once these windfarms are in the habitat is gone and so is the wildlife. Economically it's not viable especially without government subsidies.
Regards,

Travis Zolnikov

To whom it may concern.
I am writing this in response to the proposed Hills of Gold Wind Farm and my objection to the project. I have resided at Shearers road Hanging Rock for the past 30 years with my husband, making no political donations or affiliations wish to submit my objection to this project given its significant negative impact it will have on our community and biodiversity.
This project is out of character for the area and is incompatible with the rural land use. This project has already seen the major beneficiary property owner have to move his place of residence to accommodate for a project that has not yet been approved and into the path of travel of residents who reside along Shearers road. When prompted to explain the benefits of this project we were presented with temporary improvements such as increased jobs whilst being built, hard to believe when the majority of residents would be underqualified or lack the required skills to gain employment as well as ‘possible’ tourism benefits which have not been substantiated. When my son queried abut the ecological impact he was told this will be provided to him later via email, No preliminary finding were ever supplied and any information supplied was vague and lack substance to understand the impact these windfarms would cause. When asked about and advised of noise assessments we were told they were already completed placing them in areas which does not provide a true reflection of the impact these proposed wind turbines would have. The process from the start has been dreadful and only came to our attention through investigations of our own, even though we share a boundary to the proposed windfarm properties.
Our property once was a thriving fresh produce farm providing produce to the local community as well as the wider communities. A project such as this would severely impact the water supply in the area and may cut off our ability to generate any future crops or livelihood. No consideration has been made for this, making me feel like we only consider large corporations and the monetary value it can bring rather then the intrinsic value small farms such as this have to the community.
Overall the approval of such a project will destroy a small town and its community and result in a quiet place being turned into a wasteland and something I would be ashamed to pass on to my children and grandchildren due to the devaluation, both in value and in beauty.

Kind Regards

I object to the project as there is a huge impact to the flora and fauna in this iconic area. Not to mention the visual impact and the water and soil contamination.

I object to this wind farm because this project will impact on my family property, which is located virtually in the middle of the project. Although I live in ACT, one day this property will be my inheritance which would be destroyed. I love being here, camping, bike riding, watching the night skies and enjoying the peace and incredible scenery. It would be totally ruined if this industrial proposed windfarm went ahead and the value of the property would plummet. I do not believe that it is fair for anyone to have a right to impact on their neighbours to such horrendous degree, and I for one will be taking action against those responsible.
Good neighbours don't do this to their neighbours!

From the outset it needs to be clarified that the 'Hills of Gold Wind Farm' proposal is based on fraudulent claims & false propaganda, using misrepresentative & dishonest language.
The disingenuous nature & detrimental impacts of this extensive, impactful wind turbine 'dump' will cause heartbreaking environmental/ecological vandalism for no useful or positive purpose at all, extreme suffering & anguish for the local community who genuinely & practically care for their beautiful local environment, forseeable fire risks & fear for their future.
The introduction of 97 massive, inefficient, economically costly, off-shore benefiting wind turbines & toxic battery storage into a pristine, uncontaminated, genuinely clean & green, unique & irreplaceable district is not in the public interest. Such a destructive view would destroy a vast area of unique, natural beauty, robbing our children of their heritage & intergenerational equity. Future generations are entitled to enjoy this visual & environmental gem & the treasures of this wonderful, naturally beautiful district unimpeded.
Instead, this unnecessary disgrace of mass wind turbines only benefits Chinese manufacturing & money hungry, untrustworthy, off-shore developers, along with Chinese energy company dominators - Cheung Kong Conglomerate, the State Grid Corporation of China, etc.

Just driving through the mass wind turbine Crookwell area is enough to make one nauseous from the visual assault of these obnoxious monstrosities - many of which appear to be on the blink & not even operating.
The unnecessary disgrace of such an inferior energy source robs Australian taxpayers of ridiculous operating costs of at least $660,000 per year per turbine, to run at 59% efficiency!
Presently we see the negligence of shoddy workmanship in construction of similar developments, with components dangerously flinging from the turbines.
They do not provide ongoing local employment, are built as cheaply as possible, with numerous reports of worker exploitation & the failure to consistently employ suitably qualified electrical contractors where necessary & adhere to electrical specifications, rules & regulations.

Whilst masquerading as a 'climate emergency' saviour, this is completely dishonest & untrue!
The NSW Government has completely failed to take into account the whole lifecycle of these obnoxious structures - with extensive emissions created during mining & manufacturing, potent SF6 greenhouse gases leaking from the turbines & no recycling/waste plan. Claims that their energy footprint is clean, green, zero emissions & sustainable are completely fraudulent.

The health impacts have not been addressed satisfactorily at all - with their constantly annoying sound emanating from them.
Young children living nearby & attending school in the vicinity must not be subject to this audible & visual assault, nor the electromagnetic radiation from associated transmission lines.
They & all locals are entitled to have the character of the land maintained without such a blight on their rural landscape.

Hills of Gold Wind Farm is not in the public interest for this rural community or for Australia - economically, environmentally or for the health & safety of those impacted.

Neither is Hills of Gold Wind Farm safe to incorporate into Australia's critical energy infrastructure as it presents an extreme national security risk for Australia!
It is seriously regrettable & incredibly foolish that Audrey Zibelman (AEMO) was enabled to lead our energy plans/system/control down the insidious 'Green New Deal' pathway & 'The Great Reset' horror route, to the severe detriment of Australia for Beijing's total advantage.
The incorporation of these inferior, unreliable energy sources via proposed interconnectors such as 'Project Energy Connect' - presents an extreme national security threat to Australia's critical energy infrastructure, as this Interconnector - touted as the 'renewable energy freeway to the Eastern Seaboard' - links Wagga Wagga to Robertstown, S.A Substation - which is owned/controlled by the Chinese Government's - State Grid Corporation of China via ElectraNet.
Given the extreme hostilities of the Chinese Government & their clear malicious intentions to control Australia, this arrangement cannot be continued.
The United States issued an Executive order in May 2020 to remove all Chinese Government company control of critical infrastructure - including energy & to exclude the use of Chinese components which can be used for monitoring - prohibiting 'bulk power system ' equipment - facilities & control systems necessary for national power grids.
With U.S Secretary of Energy - Dan Brouilette stating - that it is imperative " that the bulk power system be secured against exploitation & attacks by foreign threats."
This is a "prudent step" aimed at securing "the most critical of critical infrastructure " (Frank J Cilluffo - Director of Auburn University McCrary Institute for Cyber & Critical Infrastructure Security) because virtually all other infrastructure rely on the power grid to function.
The Australian Federal Government must wake up & follow suit - to ensure our future energy independence & national security.

The treacherous NSW Energy/Environment Minister Matt Kean belongs in jail for torturing everyday Australians with this fraudulent horror!
His increased electricity prices - including a hidden 'tax' to fund his solar/wind energy fellow scammers - in his diabolical, unscrutinised, 100% fraudulent, renewable energy scam, is completely dishonest!
He is cursing rural NSW with his solar/wind energy rubbish nightmare, with industry & manufacturing in NSW severely curtailed by such foolish, unreliable, inefficient & insecure energy provision.
Instead of Australia using our wonderful natural resources for superior energy independence & advantage, NSW/Australia is being completely disadvantaged by a stupid & extremely harmful, corrupt energy scam, which rips off Australia & ordinary taxpayers, whilst solely benefiting off-shore developers, predominantly Chinese energy companies such as the dominating Cheung Kong Conglomerate & The State Grid Corporation of China, left-wing Liberal moderates/bureaucrats/power-brokers & their energy buddies that they lobby for, solar/wind investors & other con-artists engaged in this treacherous rort.

Transgrid are already seeking regulatory changes due to the cost blow outs of 'Project Energy Connect' in order to be able to pass on these further transmission costs to electricity consumers (AFR - 8th Oct 2020.) This is not surprising when we see Cheung Kong Conglomerate have a 15% stake in Transgrid - with the likes of Rick Francis - Vice Chairman of Transgrid, operating in the best interests of China, not Australia.
As Director of Cheung Kong's S.A & Cheung Kong's Victorian Power Networks & Executive Director of Cheung Kong's slush fund - Spark Infrastructure, Rick Francis operates against Australia's national interest & should not be driving China's insidious, global electricity agenda in Australia.

Lazards energy consultants, advisors to Snowy Hydro 2 & authors of energy cost comparisons - which unsurprisingly favour wind/solar - are complicit in this fraud, as they always exclude the astronomical costs of interconnectors, grid upgrades & battery/hydro storage - essential to incorporate this renewable con into the electricity grid.
Lazard's obvious conflict of interest & fudged energy comparisons is brazen, as they are substantial investors in the Cheung Kong Conglomerate's Spark Infrastructure - Bomen Solar fraud.

The NSW DPIE is enabling the ruination of Australia's vital electricity supply for the sole benefit of their fellow rorters engaged in the scam & the Chinese Government.

My last submission:

I am so pleased to see that this Proponent will be establishing conservation credits to offset the Koala habitat destroyed by this Project. I should point out though, that in an oversight the EIS fails to address the needs of the Koalas to be appropriately trained, so that they can establish their online accounts and trade those credits. I recommend that this training be undertaken as part of the Project.

It’s not this Project alone that can take all the credit for destroying the Koala habitat, though it certainly was the catalyst. The NSW government Environment departments, over the past few years, have also been very active (perhaps a Tautology) participants, by being so actively passive, whilst massive clear felling of the wildlife corridor between the Ben Hall and Crawney Conservation Areas was undertaken on private lands.

Fortunately a solution was found. Embarrassment for none. Nifty credit swaps to the rescue, Virtual Food that the Koalas can use in future, instead of real food.

Enjoy you Koalas.

Countless times when meeting someone for the first time you are hit with the common question “where did you grow up?” Anyone who moved around a lot as a child and particularly anyone who moved around smaller towns knows the difficulty in answering that question.

“Do I just choose somewhere close to where I grew up?”
“Do I choose the most interesting place?”
“Do I just list every suburb/town I’ve ever lived in?”

Despite the many family houses that I lived in, as I have grown older I’ve realised that there is only one place that is home. And that was on a small farm 5 kms outside of Nundle.

A home is where your character is born and hits you with nostalgia to a time that was simple and carefree in the way that only childhood is magical. Every grand childhood memory that I have, was made within a 5km radius of that farmhouse on the outskirts of Nundle. Summers spent down at the creek building treehouses with my cousins, turning branches into bows, and learning to ride horses. Values were instilled in me through growing up in a small rural town where the importance of community was made clear through volunteering in the Nundle Chinese Easter Festival and Nundle Dog Race. These memories and moments were in direct contrast with the handouts from the proposed community enhancement fund. And at the end of the day that is the crux of the matter. Wind Energy Partners don’t get it, they don’t get how there could be something that the majority of Nundle believes in that is more important then money. They don't get how we want to preserve our natural landscape, lifestyle, community, and a way of life that isn’t driven by monetary gain. That’s why any sort of discussion between Nundle residents and Wind Energy Partners leads to no result, we both operate on different world views.

The project is financially not viable, as they are trying to build windfarms on the steep slope of the Great Dividing Range. The project has already split this community that I love in half. The project will ruin a natural landscape that is beautiful and unique. I fear that the potential owners could be overseas companies that won't care about pulling the pin on the project the moment it isn't financially viable.

Overall, I do think that we need to improve our energy policy in Australia. I know of windfarms put up in nearby regions where everyone doesn't mind because it isn't an area with the unique history and landscape of Nundle. I plead you all to disallow the windfarms in consideration for the natural landscape of the region and to maintain a small part of the world that is one of a kind and loved by many.

To Whom it may concern,
I'm Nina and I have been going to Nundle since I was a little baby, I am now 11 years old. I would love to keep going to Nundle for ever, because I love it there. My parents fell in love in Nundle.
We have a house in Nundle and go to Nundle in the school holidays. My favourite times are when we take our horses to Nundle in the longer school holidays in the winter and summer. I have the best days ever when we help mustering on our friends and granddad's farms, riding into town, swimming with our horses is the Peel River and riding in the hills is very fun!
We have many friends in Nundle and I always loved to help at my grand dad's farm at the bull sale every year. The town is very beautiful and feels very safe. I love all the little shops and always buy a little treasure, my favourite shop is Sax on Jenkins. When I was younger, I always went to the Nundle preschool for a couple of days a week while in Nundle. I made good friends with the kids there, some are still my friends now.
I love our little house on the hill.
On our visits to our family in Germany (my mum is German) I have seen many windmills and I find them very ugly. They look monstrous and blink with a very bright light that hurts my eyes! I don't want to see those big things on top of the beautiful hills of Nundle and am worried about all the wild life and trees and nature up there!
I have seen the big trucks in Germany who transport the big windmill parts, they will not fit through Nundle and up the bendy road to Hanging Rock!!!
Nundle is too beautiful and small to have a big wind farm! More than half of the population will leave and in many years to come Nundle might be just a few houses on dry land because the windmills will have scared away all the people and animals and stopped the water flowing into the river!!
There are better things these days, like solar panels.

Please look after Nundle and all our friends and the animals and nature! Please don't allow the wind farm to go ahead!

Thank you,
Nina Howarth

Please see attachment for further information I would like to add to my submission.

SUBMISSION FOR OBJECTION
I hereby declare that I object to the Hills of Gold Windfarm proposal ID no.SSD9679
SUBURB: Nundle
REASON FOR OBJECTION: SUMMARY
The Nundle Wind Farm proposal is built upon a set of assertions regarding the net benefit to the environment and to Nundle which are flawed. The follow assertions are flawed:
The project can guarantee a net ecological and climate benefit through reduced greenhouse gas emissions and offsets.
The project will bring economic benefit to Nundle
As a ‘green’ project, the wind farm will highlight Nundle and its proponents as progressive

This submission will briefly outline some of the issues with the project assumptions in order to demonstrate the significant risk that the benefits will be outweighed by harm done by the project:
Risk to the environment and climate: Reducing emissions are only one component of ecological and climate benefit. It appears that the research supporting the EIS may have underestimated the potential for climate mitigation, increased bushfire risk, compromise to the local small water cycle, and impact on biodiversity, etc
Risk to tourism and limited economic benefit: Much tourism in Nundle is driven by attraction to nature, cultural history, and being a little off the beaten path - this project is at odds with those attractors and may be better placed where tourism is lacking. Furthermore, Nundle itself will not receive much in the way of direct economic benefit through ongoing jobs or land sale
Risk to reputation: Because of the potential for multiple negative ecological and economic impacts, we are concerned that the project will reek of greed, self-serving interest and short-sighted ecological and economic objectives, which will reflect poorly on the community of Nundle as well as the project proponents and the Green movement more broadly. The project is self-defeating.

In conclusion, by rejecting this project we aim for Nundle to remain a progressive community that is known for long-term investment and regard for our environment and our economy, which are intrinsically linked. We believe that wind energy is an important part of a broader sustainable energy strategy to reduce our society’s dependence on fossil fuels and emissions that harm our climate - we just believe that the benefits will be better realised in a different location.

Nundle was my birthplace. Nundle and its landscape was my early home. My father and mother moved to Nundle in 1967 to pursue a life connected to nature working the landscape for honey with their bees, market gardening, and promoting environmental measures like rainwater tanks and campaigned for water quality and security long before they were accepted.

My father witnessed the clearcutting of forests across NSW, much of which had been red cedar - a rainforest species. In my lifetime I have seen big projects like coal mining irrevocably wreck the landscape in service of an energy source that we are now moving away from - and experienced powerlessness to stop it. Let’s not repeat the same mistakes.

COVID-19 has brought us the opportunity to reassess what is important and to see the power of nature when humans aren’t so busy running around everywhere. Nature fixes herself astonishingly quickly, when we aren’t intervening. Let’s follow her lead, and think more carefully about where we decide to intervene, and what purpose it serves.

Further detail to support my objection is included in the attached submission.

OBJECTION
To whom it may concern,
Nundle has been a part of my life ever since I was a little girl. It is a beautiful little town, that for me, is a peaceful escape every school holidays. Over the past 14 years Nundle has been a precious part of my childhood, a place where I have created many memories with family and friends. My connection with the town started when my parents met and fell in love at the Dag Sheep Station. There is something so special about the story of them falling in love and I believe one of the main reasons is: where in the world they met; Nundle!
This is a shortened version of how the story goes: My mum a young woman independently traveling all around Australia as a backpacker steps of a bus at a sheep station (owned by my dad) looking for a job. When she gets offered a job as a roustabout in their shearing shed and takes it, she works and lives on the sheep station and in the meantime, finds herself falling in love with Nundle, the beautiful hills, down-to-earth people and precious and tightknit community. When my parents meet, fall in love and decided they would like to start a life together my mum moves from Germany to Nundle, Australia, and they started creating a jacaroo-jilaroo course for backpackers. Over the years the Dag Sheep Station became a popular destination for many backpackers to come and enjoy a few weeks of experience with livestock, farming and learning about the beautiful town. Once my parent’s time with the Dag Sheep Station was over, they moved to Sydney but kept a small house in the centre of town.
I am so glad that they kept that little house and that I am lucky enough to enjoy Nundle as they did and still do. Nundle is very precious to so many people who have history with the town and family connections, as well as people who come and visit from all over Australia and the world to view the picturesque hills of gold and hidden gem that the town is.
I believe that if the proposal of the windfarm goes ahead the town will lose much more than just its beauty and originality. It will have dramatic impacts on the environment, community, and visual appeal that Nundle offers.
If this project is approved the eco-system of the hills of gold, already fragile due to many years of drought and bush fires will be impacted heavily. 513 hectares of the development footprint for the project will be disturbed or cleared for the transport route, wind farm and transmission lines. 42% of that 513 hectares is native vegetation that will be cleared in the process. For me this is sad to hear as this vegetation has been thriving for hundreds of years and is a spectacular part of Nundle.
Wildlife will also be impacted by the windfarm as many animals that call the ridge line home are already endangered or on the verge of extinction. Clearing vegetation will upset the cycle of many animals such as the koala, many bats and the grey headed flying fox to name a few.
As I said before Nundle is a big part of my life, when I was younger, I loved going to the little public school and pony club once a month. For me, the main reason I don’t want this windfarm to go ahead as a fourteen-year-old girl is, because Nundle is such a special place. For me it’s the feeling of being free every time I’m there, I know that if this windfarm goes ahead Nundle will no longer be special. I believe we should preserve all the hidden gems we have left to share with generations that come after us. Although this is a renewable energy source and is good for the environment and the future, there are many other ways to create energy without destroying the environment to save it.
Thank you for your time in reading this submission.
With Kind Regards,
Josie Howarth

Please find attached the Hills of Gold Preservation Inc. objection to Hills of Gold Wind Farm Application No. SSD9679.

1. HOGPI Objection Cover letter
2. HOGPI Submission in Objection to HOGWF No. SSD9679
3. Appendix 1.0 - Soil (Report by Dr Robert Banks)
4. Appendix 3.0 - Environment (Comments by ecologist Phil Spark)
5. Appendix 13.3 - Correspondence
6. Appendix - HOGPI Newsletters

Council's submission is attached

Please find attached DPI Agriculture's comments

Thank you for advising Cessnock City Council about the proposal and the opportunity to comment.
Please be advised that Cessnock City Council does not object to the development.

Greetings,
As you may be aware RMS and TfSNW have now integrated into one organisation with organisational restructure still in the process of evolvement. In this instance a collective response will be uploaded to the Major Projects planning portal by my counterpart in the former RMS team (Northern Region and Outer Metropolitan).
This should close off the loop for the account associated with [email protected]). Thank you for your consideration in this matter.
Robert Rutledge, Principal Transport Planner
Transport for NSW

MEG - GSNSW response