Hume North Battery Energy Storage System

We urge the government to step in, halt new projects, and demand accountability from companies like AusNet, Transgrid, Powercor, and AusGrid. These corporations must be transparent with our communities, and a federal inquiry is the only way to protect us from further exploitation and unnecessary land grabs. Th e government must have an enquire

Our small area is under threat from corporate energy giants who are manipulating the market and driving up costs. Recently, big battery operators have been re-bidding prices to maximize profits, directly harming Australian families. This is not the kind of renewable energy we were promised, and it goes against the core principles of the National Electricity Law (NEL).

We need a moratorium on these developments and an independent audit to prevent the systematic dismantling of our land rights. This isn’t progress; it’s predatory behaviour, and it’s time to stand up against it

We, the residents of this area, will not stand idly by while foreign corporations use renewable energy projects as a cover for corporate exploitation, all over Vic, NSW and Qld. Powercor, TCV, Transgrid and AusGrid have aggressively pursued compulsory land acquisitions, tearing apart our rural landscape without respect for local communities. This is a betrayal of trust, not a green initiative.

The federal government must conduct a full-scale audit and halt new licenses until we have answers. It’s unjust to impose such risks on our communities without proper safeguards. This isn’t a fair transition—it’s corporate exploitation at its worst.

Our town will suffered from unreliable, weather-dependent renewable energy setups, as seen in the recent Broken Hill blackout. Large-scale battery projects, especially under the ownership of powerful corporations, lack the reliability and resilience needed to serve our community. Yet we’re being forced into this transition without any assurance of security or accountability

All Australia, new and old call on regulators to impose a moratorium on these projects and conduct a full audit of the networks. we want the regulator the add the true embedded cost to the costing the public see. If they don't this RE push is just a lie for more profit. It’s time for accountability and for Australians have had enough of the energy sector from foreign companies that prioritize profit over people.

The big battery operators have been re-bidding prices, pushing consumers into higher costs, all while securing profits for themselves.

It’s appalling that corporations are allowed to manipulate energy prices at the expense of hardworking Australians. The big battery operators have been re-bidding prices, pushing consumers into higher costs, all while securing profits for themselves. These tactics are morally unacceptable, and they contradict the objectives of fair and reliable energy access for all. Our community demands that any new energy licenses be put on hold until an independent inquiry can investigate these anti-consumer practices. If big corporations are allowed to keep treating energy as a tool for profit, it’s only the everyday Australians who will suffer.

We are united against the underhanded tactics of big battery operators who exploit market rules for profit, leading to price hikes that hurt Australian families. These market games, designed to favour corporate greed over community welfare, must end. With no real environmental gain, this push for renewable energy is proving harmful and unjustifiable. We call on regulators to impose a moratorium on these projects and conduct a full audit of the networks. It’s time for accountability and for Australians to take back control of our energy sector from companies that prioritize profit over people.

Our community cannot support a renewable energy plan that strips us of our land, raises our bills, and fails to provide secure energy. When companies like Trannies, under foreign ownership, prioritize compulsory land acquisition over respect for rural families, it’s clear that these projects serve corporate interests, not community needs. We demand an independent inquiry into these practices and a federal halt on licenses until energy operators can demonstrate a genuine commitment to the National Electricity Law. Without real oversight, we’re left vulnerable to rising costs, market manipulation, and land exploitation under the guise of “green” progress

I object and do NOT consent to the Hume N Battery Energy Storage System. Why?
*Harm to Tourism Industry, Clearing of Forests
Wide easements will be required for the high voltage power lines. An ABC News article reports that hundreds of hectares of forest will need to be cleared in order to create a 90 metre easement:
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-19/residents-fear-transmission-line-will-ruin-tourism/12465286

The transmission line has been called "a scar on the landscape" that threatens the income of local tourism businesses (due to the visual impact of the line and the effects on tourist-attracting flora and fauna).

*Loss of Precious Agricultural Land
Agricultural land taken up by required infrastructure (including wide easements) will become unavailable for agricultural use. According to TasFarmers, "The impact on farming properties will be immense and given the ongoing dedication of everyone within the agricultural industry to not only their livelihoods but also the greater prosperity of our state these impacts should be avoided where possible."
Link to article: https://tasfarmers.com.au/news/north-west-transmission-development

The State Planning Office states:
"All agriculture depends on access to suitable soil. While the fertility of soils can be renewed, the loss of access to soils through conversion to other land uses is often irreversible. Reducing the breakup (fragmentation) of agricultural land and its conversion to non-agricultural use is important for the economic viability of the farming sector. This is one of the main objectives of the State Policy."
Link to page: https://www.stateplanning.tas.gov.au/topics/rural-planning

*Loss of Property, Devaluation of Homes/Farms
Some property owners are at risk of losing a substantial part of their land through compulsory acquisition to make way for high voltage towers and other infrastructure, potentially leading to financial hardship and emotional distress.

*Fire Risk
High voltage transmission lines pose a risk of fires, especially in the high fire risk areas of regional and rural Tasmania. In Victoria, where a similar situation exists, volunteer firefighters from at least 24 brigades have refused to fight fires around new renewables projects and transmission lines, due to serious, life-threatening safety concerns:

Volunteer firefighters say they will not fight fires around new renewables projects, transmission lines
https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2024-06-19/cfa-renewables-protest-volunteer-firefighters-transmission-lines/103995318

Letter of Demands:
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/666fbe726b8433675b4b60e5/t/666fcade2c48fc6ef840a0a0/1718602469171/RE+Impacted+CFA+Brigades+Letter+of+Demands+and+sign+off+FINAL+14+June+24.pdf

Smoke from fires near or under transmission lines can create electrical arcs or flashovers, which are potentially life-threatening to those nearby:
https://www.cfa.vic.gov.au/about-us/what-we-do/fighting-fires-around-transmission-lines
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-06-20/lithium-ion-batteries
*Leakage of SF6 Gas (a potent greenhouse gas) into the Environment
SF6 (sulphur hexafluoride) is a synthetic gas that is widely used in the electrical industry as insulating material in switchgear for medium and high-voltage electrical installations. It is a component in distribution and transmission equipment in the power network and is found in large power stations and electrical sub-stations. SF6 is an extremely potent greenhouse gas that enters the atmosphere through leaks in the electricity industry. Wind and solar farms require a significantly longer and more complex energy grid than a fossil fuels-based system, which means more switchgear is needed, and therefore more SF6 is leaked into the environment. (Recall that the North West Transmission Developments Project alone involves 240 kilometres of high-voltage power lines.)

The global warming potential of SF6 gas is 23,500 times that of CO2, with an extremely long atmospheric lifetime of 3,200 years – the highest global warming potential of any known substance. SF6 cannot be absorbed or destroyed naturally (unlike CO2, which is absorbed by plants). Atmospheric concentrations of SF6 gas have nearly doubled in the last two decades, "as an unintended consequence of the green energy boom":

Climate change: Electrical industry’s “dirty secret” boosts warming
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-49567197?ref=WindEurope

Evaluation of SF6 Leakage from Gas Insulated Equipment on Electricity Networks in Great Britain
https://doi.org/10.3390/en11082037

*Electromagnetic Radiation and Harm to Human Health
Electromagnetic radiation from high-voltage electric lines – especially long-term exposure – has been linked to health problems in humans, particularly cancer (including leukemia in children), as well as other conditions. The greatest health risk is to children, pregnant women, and those with underlying health problems.

Health Hazards of Electromagnetic Radiation
https://www.scirp.org/html/50957.html

DOI Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/jbm.2014.28001

Evidence that electromagnetic fields from high voltage powerlines and in buildings, are hazardous to human health, especially to young children
https://researcharchive.lincoln.ac.nz/server/api/core/bitstreams/7d07ed5e-0945-4b27-bdf2-15a9c7f1acd7/content

The very clear evidence from NSW, where they were unbelievably and unacceptably asked to "turn off their dishwashers, washing machines and air conditioners between 3pm - 8pm on a warm, spring day "to help the grid" because it couldn't handle the load. Not to mention Broken Hill's power being off for a long time after the hurricane that touched down in their area, effectively shutting off all of the "renewables only" in the area, thus, cutting off power to everyone in Broken Hill.

It seems that "renewables only" are NOT working and obviously cannot work without permanent coal, gas or nuclear baseload power.

Very recent further evidence that renewables only are NOT working and are unacceptably causing constituents to have to sit in the dark for long periods of time:

"The leaps of faith in this vision are cavernous and almost entirely ignore the laws of physics as well as the constraints of engineering and economics. Take, for instance, the proposition that we have oodles of land. Yes and no. Wind turbines are best located on the ridge lines of mountains; hence the desecration of much of the Great Dividing Range. It also ignores the entirely legitimate preferences of the existing users of the land.

Siting renewable energy installations a long distance from the demand involves massive costs in terms of additional transmission lines, voltage loss and refitting of distribution systems. As for the proposition that all this electricity from renewable sources can be effectively used by existing and new large-scale plants is another whimsy." Chris Bowen is wrong to call Australia a renewable energy superpower | The Australian, 03 December 2024.

"In fact, across the past year, the Australian Energy Market Operator’s data dashboard records that brown and black coal supplied 64 per cent of the eastern grid’s electricity and gas 6 per cent. So 70 per cent fossil fuel then. Wind delivered 15 per cent of generation across the same time and grid-scale solar 8 per cent.

So coal is far and away the most reliable generator on the eastern national electricity market.

"Search the arid desert of Bowen’s words and there are usually some grains of truth. It is true that, like Animal Farm’s loyal carthorse, Boxer, the dependable generators on the grid are being flogged to death to make up for the routine failure of wind and solar to show up for work." Chris Uhlmann: Bowen plan threatens to leave us in the dark | The Australian, 30 November 2024.

"They tried to appear flippant, to give the impression this power rationing on a warm day was acceptable and all part of the plan. NSW Premier Chris Minns, his Energy Minister Penny Sharpe and federal Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen asked us to refrain from washing clothes or dishes for a few hours and to dial up the thermostat on the aircon – according to them, we do not need to be as cool as we would like to be.

Wouldn’t you love to see their thermostats? They mentioned the pool filter, too; it should be flicked to off – perhaps splashing in the pool and cranking up the aircon can be saved until winter."
"Labor and the Greens (and, let us be frank, too many Liberals over the years) have given us an energy grid that works well enough as long as there is not strong demand for electricity. It is like a bucket with holes halfway up the side, or a fence with a gap – next I suppose they will design a tunnel that is too narrow for the trains or a ferry that can’t squeeze under the bridge. (I know, I know, governments have already given us these innovations.)" Australia’s energy grid can’t handle a few warm days | The Australian, 29th November 2024.
I have also enclosed in this email further evidence of the extreme risk of bushfires breaking out from wind turbines, the high voltage transmission lines the wind turbines, large battery storage containers, solar farms (along with Marinus Link) that are or planned to be connected to and the how the large battery storage containers and solar farms themselves are extreme bushfire hazards. Worse, it seems that the 2500 wind turbines in Victoria have no critical fire safety suppression equipment on them, which should be standard on every wind turbine, especially since they are connected to the high voltage transmission lines and the dangers of flashovers. What is a flashover and why is it so dangerous and potentially life threatening?
"A flashover is when electricity, especially at higher voltages, jumps across an air gap to create a conductive path. A flashover may occur between wires or from wires to the ground - this may be seen as a flash or heard as an explosion or loud cracking sound."

CWO REZist Inc. objects to the Hume North BESS.

The BESS will use lithium technology. Batteries use lead, lithium and cobalt, all of which are hazardous materials. This is of much concern to residents and the community as ordinary fire suppression measures cannot extinguish a Lithium chemical reaction fire. A fire that occurred in the 350MW/450MWh BESS during testing on 30 July 2021 in Geelong, Victoria shows how dangerous it can be for nearby residents. When one of the 13 tonne battery packs caught fire, it burned for three days and resulted in the evacuation of residents because of the toxic fumes generated.

A fire in a BESS would threaten immediate residents and those residing in the nearby.

What about end of life for the BESS? According to the CSIRO in 2021, only 10% of Australia's 3,300 tonnes of lithium-ion battery waste was recycled. Lithium battery waste is growing at 20% a year. Most of Australia's battery waste is shipped overseas, with the remaining waste going to landfill, leading to potential fires and environmental contamination. This is NOT ‘green” and will only poison our land - a high price to pay for centuries - a couple of hours of power!

The project will occupy many many hectares, reducing valuable grazing and cropping land, which could threaten local food production.

Local vegetation may include endangered species like the Western Blue Box and Silver-leaved Mountain Gum, which could be threatened by land clearing.

The BESS facility could create noise, disturbing the rural tranquillity and impacting local residents’ mental health and well-being.

See attachment. ACF-AWR supports renewable energy and storage projects and we offer feedback on the EIS and suggest improvements for project outcomes for both the project proponent, the community, and the environment/biodiversity.

This project may disturb habitats of critically endangered and endangered species, such as raptor and migratory birds, and other flora and fauna unique to the region.

I Vehemently Object to Hume North BESS.


“Foresight Group is a public company that invests in clean energy and infrastructure projects.”



“GSP Energy Pty Ltd is under the management of Foresight.”



Crap Crap Crap is their way, those Claiming Clean Energy where there is No such thing.



How do you get away with it ?



Cease Now All BESS, toxic and Unnecessary.



Investors, please Invest in a Green Army Future, and hold yourselves high.



Cease All BESS and understand why.



Foreigners have No idea Australia is a Dry Continent, the Driest Continent on Earth.



Our Australian, State, and Local Government have No Idea Australia is a Dry Continent, the Driest Continent on Earth, a Land, named Australia by the British, who have taken over a Planet, sadly, very sadly, sadly, very sadly, with Consequences they will Never Take Responsibilty for, yet are Fully Responsible for.



Cease and Desist BESS Now, thank you.



Cease and Desist Hume North BESS Now, thank you.



Invest in Green Armies, gov.au, and offer a Benefit to All Australians, note All, Australians, Us, Aussies, Australians, upon the Driest Continent on Earth, in the Wrong Hands, sadly.



Cease and Desist Hume North BESS, a Not need. A Not need.



I Pray for My Nation, the Driest Continent on Earth, in the Wrong Hands.



I Pray for Enlightenment in Humanity where they will Awaken to their Lack of Care toward Mother Earth, Water, yes Water, flowing through Catchments, from high to low, every moment.



I Pray for a Clean Future where the Environment is Cared for Simply. Three and Only Three Brand New Coal Fired Power Stations in NSW is a Far Less Harming method of generating energy than all the others current gov.au and investors plan without our Permission or Consent.



How do you do it ? Offer Crap on websites ? Crap stories that mean Nothing at all except the Usual Jobs agenda.



AI will Take Away Most jobs including gov.au Jobs, Including. Cease AI Now.



Cease AI Now.



Cease AI Now.



Cease SMART Now.



Go toward a very able future where we all know why we’re here.



We are here to Care for Country and All On Country Mother Earth.



We are here to Care for Mother Nature, not harm Her more.



We are here to Offer Back to Mother Earth.



Our Job is to Replant Nature our governments around the World Take without asking Permission.



Our Job here is to Live Simply and offer Gratitude to Mother Nature for all we receive.



Our Job is to be Here Now and hear the Earth say, Care for Me, Care for Me, Care for Me, but we aren’t hearing Her, are you, you in gov.au and Sharemarket World, Only interested in Money and Without a Care toward Life Planetary.



Shame on you all.



I Must Demand a Moratorium on BESS Immediately.



You should know why BESS is Not an option in Our Futures You are deciding and Will Be Responsible and Accountable for, gov.au, nsw.gov.au, investors, and companies needing investigation because it’s Obvious there is No effort to COOL Mother Earth. COOL Mother Earth. Yes, COOL Mother Earth, and the Driest Continent on Earth.



Money Money Money is the Only reason BESS is enabled.



BESS are needing to Cease This Moment, 13th December 2024.



Cease and Desist Hume North BESS. A Not need.

Hi,
Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the EIS. My responses are concerned with Appendix E- Biodiversity Development Assessment Report. Please find my comments in the attached pdf.