This project will be very valuable to the district,as well as the Planet. Some people think this a loss of farming land , this not so as it suits running sheep perfectly.MEAT and FIBER production would be brilliant with the solar panells providing excellent shelter. This is the best thing to happen locally and it must proceed. It will reduce our reliance on burning COAL the absolute worst thing we are doing!!!!!

Attached is the response from DRG on the Culcairn Solar Farm SSD-10288 request for advice on the EIS documents.

I am objecting to the proposed solar farm at Culcairn as the land that the solar panels will be erected upon is very good agricultural land. It seems the company will be paying kickbacks to local community groups & if the project is so great for the community these annual payments should not be needed. Work out how much it will cost to remove the panels and infrastructure at the end of life of the solar farm and ask the company to pay that money upfront into an account that will be used to rectify land at the end of the project. (this company could go broke or new technology comes out that makes these panels obsolete and then who is going to remove panels at end of life). The only reason this project is proposed at this site is due to the proximity of high voltage power lines. If solar farms are so beneficial maybe TransGrid should link some new high voltage lines to a site that is not good agricultural land, that has more sunlight and does not affect neighbours.

While I support the idea of solar energy, as demonstrated by the solar panels on the roof of my home and my business, I don't agree that solar farms in this region will bring value to our communities. The short term gains of building solar farms in areas that can still be productive in drought is short sighted. Less farms and less farming families in our towns will have a lasting social effect.

This area can be productive without any extensive irrigation. There maybe other places more appropriate for solar farms, that may require more cost of infrastructure but this would be preferred by me rather than the long term cost to our community.

While building such a project locally, any gains to the towns any my business would be minimal, as I have seen in the past. Being close to a centre like Albury, the small towns will see little effect or benefits as most of any money spent will go the bigger towns.

The disruption to the local community will have a lasting effect. The divide in the community on this project will create extra tension and alienate the communities some more.

I support renewable energy as I believe that it is the way of the future and we need to move away from fossil fuels. Having read the EIS in depth it is my opinion that the company has carried out all of the surveys and supplied in depth reports to indicate that this is the perfect site for a solar farm. I am also very pleased to read that the land will also be used to graze sheep. Dual landuse is the best way to go, win win for electricity generation and agriculture in the area.

As a local resident of the Greater Hume Shire, I fully support the development of solar farms in my region. I am particularly in favour of the job opportunities the projects will provide the region and the environmental benefits of solar farms nationally.

I am one of the host landholders for the proposed Culcairn solar farm. Obviously my opinion is not going to carry much weight due to this, however i wish to point out a few things that need to be said.
The benefits of this project locally are significant. At a local level it is going to drive the struggling economy of the greater hume shire during the build phase as well as the operational life of the project. This will occur through direct employment as well as the community benefits and the VPA that has been outlined in the EIS. Along with still being able to turn off some agricultural produce through the grazing of sheep there will still be some money spent in the agricultural sector of the shire. The two towns in close proximity of the development will undoubtedly get a boost from the project. They are in need of some economic stimulus to combat the drought and other negative factors in the area.
Further to the economics of the proposal the environmental benefits will in my mind have just as much impact locally. The growing of vegetation screening and the improvement to wildlife habitat and the reduction in chemical use can only be seen as an absolute positive by anyone that cares for the environment.
Also the importance of reducing carbon emmisions and the reliance on coal cannot be understated. Having been involved first hand with the terrible fires that have occurred throughout the country over a long and protracted period it is hard to deny something is changing.

Interestingly the tactics which have been adopted by the people who are against the project has been nothing short of disgraceful. I have been subjected to being called names and had my character brought into question on numerous occasions and also accused of using my position on council for my own benefit . I was also asked to resign by the company i work for as some of the opposition threatened to no longer deal with the company if i was still employed by them.

In closing I believe that this project has covered all of the requirements of the development application and environmental assessment that are required and in most instances surpassed them. Further to that it is my land and I firmly believe that I should be able to do anything on that land which is legal and fits in with the planning framework. I hope that this application will be assessed with common sense, science and economics in mind rather than all of the emotional and non fact based arguments against the projects.

Proposed Culcairn Solar Farm SSD-10288

I am property holder in the vicinity of the proposed Culcairn Solar Farm in the Greater Hume Shire of New South Wales. My concerns regarding the proposed development follow. The concerns are not listed in order of importance as I believe all are of major significance.
• The use of valuable, productive and fertile farming land. The food production of the land is of major importance as the climatic changes occurring in this country reduce the ability of widespread agriculture in other areas, both crops and livestock, to provide for the future supply of food. Drought conditions in regional areas make productive farming land an invaluable asset to the national economy.
• The removal of any natural vegetation directly impacts the biodiversity of the region.
• The heat generated by the Solar Farm creates an increased cost to farmers affecting their livestock, such as water requirements, as well as drying the surrounding environment.
• The risk of fire which may be uncontrollable due to the structures in place supporting the panels is a danger to the region as access would be limited.
• The visual impact on the rural environment affects land values in the immediate area.
• My property is a ‘lifestyle block’ of two hundred and fifty acres which is located at the intersection of Benambra Road and Weeamera Road in the Greater Hume Shire. The proposed Solar Farm will reduce the value and salability of the property.
• My property is a source of income and the Solar Farm adversely affects future financial plans for my family.
• Initially I was not consulted about the proposed development as other property holders were as there is not a dwelling on the site at present. Consideration for consultation was given to properties with dwellings but I consider the production value of any surrounding land to be of equal importance to farm residences. That value may be from agricultural activities or businesses which also rely on income generated from the land.
• The area under consideration for the development of a Solar Farm lies on a main connecting road between two rural towns and caters for large numbers of traffic both farming and services.
• The companies developing such sites will earn significant profits over time but appear to do so with little expenditure on their part in relation to long term income. Unproductive land is available in outlying areas where companies will have to spend more to establish the projects. The income generated by renewable energy sites away from productive agricultural areas will still earn the profits they desire in the future.
• Farming communities and companies rely on agriculture as their livelihood which has a flow on effect for the food production of this country. Rural towns rely on the farming sector, retail, government services and education for example, and will be affected by the proposed development. It is extremely rare that this area does not produce significant amounts of grain and other produce annually.