Winterbourne Wind Farm

I have a few concerns in regards to this project. Firstly the transport of the materials, the impact that will have on our roads and the huge increase in the volume of traffic that it would involve. I am worried about a strain on our resources such as water. I am concerned about the decommissioning of the turbines and who will be responsible for that. I am not sure what to expect in terms of noise generated by the turbines. I worry about the impact on wildlife, particularly birds. I am also concerned about how drastically it will change the look of our beautiful town and surrounding area. I don not understand why they have to be located so close to the town.

The project will financially benefit Walcha.
We need renewables to update the power system in Australia.
If it doesn't go ahead now, it may never go ahead.
We have been negotiating for this project for 20 years and I am excited about the project being so close to starting.

I am a resident of Port Macquarie and one side of my family own a portion of land within the Walcha area that has been relatively untouched by development. I myself have travelled through this area with my family and have come to understand its importance it plays in combating the ongoing effects of climate change. Hearing that this project will be clearing large portions of woodland is very upsetting and is from what I understand is a ignorant decision considering how important the area is for its ecological diversity but also how there is a substantial amount of grassland used for agricultural processes that can be used as spots for farms rather than clearing more land.
Additionally, the development of this farm will deeply impact the surrounding environments due to runoff of materials, the loud sound that wind turbines create, the waste that the blades produce and the roads that will have to be created to transport material.
There must be another location that these blades can be put rather than clearing more land that will only increase the effects of climate change.

I would like to register my objection to the Winterbourne Wind Farm project. Of the sections in the EIS that I have read, I find it fascinating that a project of this scope can submit an EIS that is so lacking.

One of my concerns are that this project is being planned for fertile and highly productive, agricultural land. Why did the developer not seek land that has low productivity or no means of income? Why target beautiful agricultural land that produces food and fibre (fine wool), or don't they care?

Why would you situate a project of industrial scale in the vicinity of a National Park, or for that matter an area that has UNESCO World Heritage listing? The shameful biodiversity risk assessment stated in this EIS makes our region sound arid and void of any wildlife. Those of us who live in the Walcha District are fully aware of the diverse range of wildlife on our doorstep and the impact this project will have. Our beautiful National Parks are a drawcard for our region and I fear this project will impact on this.

Impact on our roads. We are a small rural town and for those of us who travel regularly, rely on deliveries, cart stock or need urgent medical attention, the impact that the disruption will have to travel times to the Tamworth region will inevitably cause stress and potentially the life or lives of our community members, or those travelling through. Our roads just cope with the current level of traffic. It may be called the Oxley Highway but it is a rural road, narrow in areas, twisting and turning and damaged in sections. We do not have choice for alternate routes, we are practically one road in and one road out. I am perplexed at how transport of the blades will be possible, or how we are expected to go about our lives during the excessive, and what I imagine is an under-estimation, of vehicles in all nature of sizes on our roads. Delays will cost people and businesses money. If the developer has to widen the roads, again what impact will this have? More trees knocked down, more animals displaced, additional disruption and damage to these roads.

Water. After near two years of drought water security for Walcha, like many small rural towns across the country, is vital. Where does the developer plan on getting the copious amount of water required for this project? I imagine it will not be from Walcha, so where will they be sourcing it and how will they get it here? Has this been calculated and included, or is this something that the developer will just work out later, will this be another impact on our small community will have to bare?

Decommissioning, again something that will impact on the local environment. What happens with these monstrosities when that are no longer viable? Do they just stand in the paddocks and rust, or do we dig a big hole and bury them? Perhaps this is something the developer is happy for future generations have to deal with. From the EIS there is no simply no plan and I imagine the developer will be long gone when landholders and the wider community are left with this problem.

The developer needs to look at alternate locations for this project. The impact that it will have on our community will be clearly negative, the project in its planning stage is already destroying life-long relationships. Those that have farmed for generations, producers of quality beef, lamb and fine wool are prepared to pack up and leave. The secrecy and lack of transparency by the developer on a project that many of us have discovered has been in the pipeline for years is shameful.
Again I object to this project. Walcha is not the place for it, nor should any highly productive land across our nation be. These projects should make use of land that has no other purpose.

Thank you for reading and considering my submission.

The world is facing an existential crisis with climate change caused by the rapid the release over the last century of carbon dioxide from fossil fuel deposits sequesterd under the ground over millions of years. The implementation of this wind farm project is essential to produce energy to maintain our society as we phase out fossil fuels as an energy source. I am at a loss to have to explain or highlight these incontrovertible facts. I am aware that there may be minor impacts on visual amenity and the environment but these pale into insignificance compared with the environmental devastation ad species loss that is already occuring from climate change. It would be a travesty to prevent the projects implementation.

Please find Hills of Gold Preservation Inc's Objection to Winterbourne Wind Farm attached.

I object to the Winterbourne Wind project - see attachment for details.

The wind turbines in the Walcha area will be a disaster. Not only for the community but the environment as well. The community would be completely split in two and the environment would end up in a tragic state. To run these wind turbines it needs to have extreme amounts of water for it to be able to run. The water will then have to come from the Walcha area, which is mostly farm land. So, this could not possibly be a good idea for the Walcha community and it's environment in any way.

I fully support the project. I am a landholder and wind turbines are proposed to be placed on our property. It will be beneficial to our family, town and state providing added income, jobs and renewable power.
I do have some concerns about the development and would like greater detail given regarding mitigation of the spread of weeds from increased traffic. I could not identify any wash down areas or procedures mentioned to reduce the risk of spreading weeds. The main weeds of concern are St John's Wart, African Love grass and Nodding Thistle.
I think the location of the windfarm is ideal as it impacts relatively few people once the project is completed. I would suggest reducing or removing several turbines which are proposed close to the Walcha township as I feel 90% of the conflict will be created by 10% of the turbines which are visible by the town residence.
I would compromise with people opposed to the wind farm project and limit the maximum number of turbines that are allowable in the Walcha shire to an agreeable figure . 300 - 500 turbines??
I really hope this project will be granted permission to proceed as there are so many benefits arising from its development. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to submit my support for the project.
Stuart Blake 0487276727

1. Foreign manufactured, foreign investment of dated technology without connective infrastructure that is compromising pristine quality food and fibre producing country.
I do not see any gains to myself, Walcha, NSW or Australia. We will not get cheap, reliable power from these developments. Foreign companies will get a lot of Australian money.
2. Walcha Council cannot maintain its road network already. It will not be able to manage the massive increase in vehicle movements and the consequent road damage?
3. It is disgraceful that a large wealthy foreign company can trade our native flora and fauna for a monetary value!!!!
4. Winterbourne Wind has submitted this EIS and proceeded with this plan without any connectivity to the grid or an access agreement with Transgrid!!
5. The idea of creating an energy industry within a quality food and fibre industry is preposterous.

Let me be clear, these wind turbines in the Walcha area will be a disaster. Not only for the community, but for the environment as well. The community will be torn apart and the environment will suffer greatly. To run these wind turbines, we need an enormous amount of water, which will have to be sourced from the Walcha area, mostly farm land. It's clear that this plan is not in the best interest of the Walcha community or the environment.

The wind farm is a very important initiative at supporting industry and green energy in our community.

Given the New England energy zone has more project proposals then the zone’s electricity generation capacity, project approvals must be prioritised to those that do not compromise the best values within the local area or the harmony within the community.

This project will have a significant adverse effect on biodiversity, visual and landscape amenity, land values, wilderness, tourism and the harmony within the local community. This project is in the wrong location and should not be granted approval.

The multi layered ownership of the company is a concern from the perspective of compliance to development consent conditions and keeping promises made to landowners and the community. The majority owner of the project is an offshore mega company that has consulted extremely poorly to the community and major stakeholders during the planning and EIS stage of the project. The company has submitted a grossly misleading and unfactual EIS document with unrealistic conclusions. For example, the EIS concludes the project will not have an impact of fire fighting capability in the area. This is incorrect as aerial operations will be compromised. The use of tourism data from 2013 is out of date; the statements made about the low relevance of the tourism figures in Walcha compared to the state of NSW are irrelevant in local context. The list of inaccuracies and mistruths are endless.

With the submission of a misleading EIS and a lack of commitment to stakeholders during the planning phase, the project owner has shown it is not a fit and proper company for landowners, community and governments to run a compliant large scale renewable project.

How is this oversees company going to be held accountable to the consent conditions? How is this oversees company going to be held accountable to the promises made to the community?

The cost to government to impose consent conditions will be high and the chances of succeeding will be low. Winterbourne Wind (WW) “the proponent” stands to be the fallout company for the majority owner Vestas. WW will be left to comply with development consent and community issues with no power or funds to guide the project’s direction. Consent for these major projects must only be awarded to those that engage in the process and build confidence in community and governments. Alarm bells are ringing loud here with confidence already low, this project has the hallmark signs of a losing horse that will plague individuals, community and government for the life of the project if approved.

The location of turbines near the Oxley Wild Rivers National Park (OWRNP) and within sight of wilderness is unnecessary and unacceptable. National parks provide great value to society by providing a place to engage in outdoor activity within a natural environment. Wilderness areas provide opportunities for solitude, a feeling of isolation and remoteness. Less than 3% of the state is declared wilderness. As the population grows and more land is developed the value of national park and wilderness land will be a precious resource not only for health benefits to individuals but to the local communities that will benefit financially from these drawcards. The Wilderness Act is legislated in NSW to protect wilderness areas. Wilderness values and the resources it holds must be protected and not eliminated by poor development approvals by government.

The project plan in its current form will eliminate the natural feeling one would expect of having in parts of OWRNP. The project will eliminate the feeling of isolation, remoteness and the solitude experience from many vantage points within declared wilderness. The project is not compatible with national park and wilderness values and therefore must not be audible and visible from the OWRNP or declared wilderness land.

The EIS suggests the project may cause interference to radio communication services in the surrounding areas, and that further information from the operators of these services is required to determine the likely impacts. Radio communication is the only method of communication in most areas around OWRNP and is therefore heavily relied on by emergency service agencies. Given the remote nature of the OWRNP and the lack of mobile phone service the proponent must guarantee radio communication will not be interrupted by the project before development consent is granted. Turbines should be moved to a position that will not interfere with radio communication services for emergency service agencies.

Walcha, part of the New England high country is promoted for its wild rivers and scenic landscapes and views. The project will destroy the existing natural scenic and visual amenity of the local area that generates economical support to the community. The scenic and visual amenity of the local area should not be compromised by this development.

Siting of turbines near vegetation will result in constant death to raptors and bat species via blade strike. The direct impact to these species over the life of the project is substantial. Wind turbines must be sited 200m away from vegetation to avoid substantial impacts to raptors and bat species.

The level of vegetation and habitat clearing is excessively large. As a result the offset requirement is also excessively large. Vegetation and habitat clearing must be scaled back dramatically. The proponent has chosen to offset the development impact rather than site it in a manner that has a minimal impact to biodiversity. It is not suitable to trade biodiversity against climate change.

The development has divided the people within Walcha and the sheer level of objection should be recognised by the consent authority. This is not a project that is required to meet the targets to transfer to renewable energy and therefore it must be considerably scaled down, moved away from the National Park by a significant distance or preferably completely rejected because of the many issues that plague this proposal.

I am completing this EIS submission as I strongly object to the Winterbourne Wind Project. I grew up in Walcha and all my family live in and around Walcha. I spend 3/4's of every week living and working in Walcha, and work 2 days in Armidale. I object to the Winterbourne Wind Project for the following reasons;
1. The high ecological impact of the project – The wind project is being constructed right against the Oxley Wild Rivers National Park, Wilderness areas and UNESCO Heritage Gondwana Forest. I have serious concerns about the impact of construction of the turbines on the national park and the Macleay River catchment due to run-off from the removal of trees, land clearing for turbine and road construction, and high intensity heavy traffic to name a few. The turbine construction process will without a doubt destroy wildlife corridors into and out of the national park area.
2. The damage to our biodiversity – The New England area is home to a significant concentration of Wedgetail Eagles and Raptors. These birds are in high numbers particularly on the edge of the gorge country where many of the turbines are being proposed. We know that wind turbines kill birdlife as they are prone to be struck by the blades – this is a well-documented fact. Bird Strike by turbines will also impact many other endangered and non-endangered birds as well as bats. I am also concerned about the land clearing process where we stand to lose threatened flora and ecological communities. Our area is rich in biodiversity which is indicative of a healthy ecosystem and the wind project threatens to destroy this.
The Biodiversity Offset Scheme of the Winterbourne Wind Project is projected to be $64million! This is proof alone that the project is not environmentally friendly and will be damaging to the environment (flora and fauna). Money does not fix or repair destroyed natural ecology. The project should not be in this area.
3. I have grave concerns about the health impacts of the project to people in the community. I am concerned about respiratory impacts from increases in dust inhalation and increases in air pollution from the gigantic uptick in heavy traffic that is predicted. Blade noise, blade vibration, and blade flicker are also serious concerns to people’s health. The Voice for Walcha have revealed that they commissioned an acoustical engineering company to execute a Technical Review of the noise report done by the developer, which forms part of the EIS. This review has highlighted multiple errors in the developer’s failure to comply with standards and regulation as well as highlighted how the developer made assumptions on the assessment. The review found that actual sound levels may be 14dB higher than estimated by the developer. The errors may result in hundreds of properties who are currently considered to be unaffected by sound being affected by sound that is outside the allowable legislated limit. This is a terrifying finding and the EIS is failing to predict the before and after effects of the turbines in relation to sound.
4. The impact of the project on our Water resources is confounding. The EIS states the water it needs for the project will come from bores in the area, farm dams or from Walcha Council Supply. This is once again environmentally unsustainable. The impact on the great artesian bore will be significant and potentially irreparable. Walcha Council doesn’t even have the water infrastructure to support this project’s water needs.
5. The project also poses a significant impact on current gravel sources. From my reading, the project requires 850,000 tonnes of gravel to construct 113kms of road and hardstands. The gravel will have to be trucked into the area and the EIS does not include the majority of these truck movements in their assessment as to date the developer is unsure where the water and gravel is coming from. There will be huge impacts on our roads with the huge amounts of heavy traffic intensity predicted to cart the gravel and water required.
6. The wind turbines affectively create a no fly zone - this impacts on bush fire fighting capacity, conducting aerial farming practices such as fertilizer/seed spreading, and aerial dog baiting by national parks and wildlife service.

The proposed 19 turbines all have blades that contain large amounts of Bisphenol A (BPA), which will then be shed into the atmosphere and surrounding environment. BPA is an endocrine disrupting chemical that has a direct effect on various hormones and fertility parameters. Research by experts in our community have determined that approximately 62kg of BPA will shed off each turbine per year (estimating future trajectories of BPA into the environment that is 119 turbines x 62kg of BPA x 25 years at least). These damaging levels of BPA would have astounding impacts on the fertility of both males and females in the area, such as affecting ovarian egg reserves and reducing the quality of embryos. BPA exposure may also result in other disease in the community, including effects on the brain of foetuses, infants and children, potentially causing behavioural changes. Papers have also shown a possible link between BPA and increased blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. How can the developer of this project - with government approval - be comfortable with exposing the community to such damaging levels of BPA? It has become widely acknowledged that this compound should be avoided and removed from our environment as much as possible, such that many individuals and families minimise their exposure to BPA as often as possible, opting for stainless steel, glass or ceramic containers over plastic and searching for BPA free products in their supermarkets. BPA and its related compounds must be kept away from our community and off of our farms, else the health of the families of this region and the quality of their produce suffer.

I say, old chap, those wind turbines in the Walcha area will be a right disaster, don't you know. Not only for the community, but for the environment as well. The community would be split down the middle, and the environment would be in a right state, I tell you. And let's not forget, these turbines shed BPA plastic during their lifetime and once they've had their day, they're devilishly difficult to recycle. And don't even get me started on the problem of how to transport them once they're done for. In conclusion, they're jolly bad news for both the community and the environment.

My initial concerns revolve around the discussions within the community which started in earnest around the worst drought in 100 years. It is of concern to me that land owners with the financial pressure of the land could not possibly have received adequate advice in relation to the contractual obligations with whichever body holds the lease.

In addition, how can the neighbours be in any position to make a decision about signing a contract, when they do not profit adequately for the significant impact (whatever impacts these happen to be, for example, aesthetic or health). Where is the information provided to every member of the community, whether that be a land holder, neighbour or other, in relation to who will be financially responsible for damage to the road, the land, the stock, the decommissioning of the turbines or any other financial obligation if Winterbourne Wind, or whichever company owns it. Where are the contracts? Where are the explanatory documents in relations to the contracts?

Where is the information that advises land owners of the effect of any intergenerational transfers of lands that a farmer might want to make? The beneficiary of such a transaction is not in a position to negotiate. If they wish to borrow from their banks, do they have to enter into an agreement with Winterbourne Wind?

What's the benefit of transferring the farm, if in essence they cannot control the effect on their farm?

Who gave advice to the initial land holders?

Where was the consultation with the rest of the community?

In my view, there simply hasn't been enough discussion and information provided. The impact on relationships in the town is already been felt.

This whole project could've been managed in a positive way. I am strongly in support of renewable energy, but if the financial responsibilities required from the mining companies are not also applied to the renewable sector, we haven't got a hope.

Believe me, I am telling you, I am so against these wind turbines they want to build in the Walcha area. It's going to divide the community like you wouldn't believe. And the environmental impact, it's a disaster. They shed all this plastic, BPA, and it's barely recyclable, it's terrible. Trust me, we can do better.

There are many issues not addressed adequately for me in the EIS.
Will the towers have any impact on the weather? More frosts? Less storms?
The EIS has determined that there will be no noise impact to any human dwellings. How about the homes of immeasurable fauna both above and underground?
Can the Kempsey flood plain handle an extra 8 million litres of water per year even in an average year?
Attached is a Word document which further highlights my concerns.

Believe me, I am telling you, I am so against these wind turbines getting built in the Walcha area. It's going to divide the community like you wouldn't believe. And the environmental impact, it's a disaster. They shed all this plastic, BPA, and the towers are barely recyclable, it's terrible. Trust me, we can do better.