Council approves windmills

Bendigo Advertiser
Saturday 16/6/2007 Page: 11

Buloke Shire's nine councillors have given a unanimous thumbs-up for a wind farm between Charlton and Wedderburn. A permit application lodged by Acciona Energy was given the green light at the council's meeting this week, kickstarting development of a $45 million wind farm at Berrimal, 19 km south of Charlton and 16 km west of Wedderburn.

The proposal is for between 12 and 16 wind turbines, along with associated buildings, access routes and grid connections. It is expected to deliver enough power for about 16,000 homes. The project will net the council an extra $61,000 in annual rates. The private landowner on whose property the wind farm will be built is believed to have been offered more than $100,000 a year for his lease deal.

Cr Lloyd Paterson told The Advertiser this week's decisions were the result of more than two years public consultation and comprehensive assessments of the project's environmental, cultural and economic outcomes. "There was not one objection," Cr Paterson said yesterday. "I think they're fantastic. "Everyone is as happy as hell about this."

Fellow councillor Peter Watts lives next door to the proposed wind farm site; his home will be within 2.5 km and within full view of all the turbines. His family has farmed here for five generations and he still manages 1800 ha, grazing wool sheep and cropping lupins, barley, wheat and triticale. The family still owns the original 1872 settlement.

Cr Watts is excited and proud that his small shire is leading rural Victoria in embracing alternative energy sources and actively exploring new opportunities, the wind project just one among several the council is exploring. "I just hope this will start some of the other projects going," he said. "People have got to start to wake up.

"Fair enough, some people have some issues, but some have gone overboard (in their opposition) and fair enough they (wind farms) should not be destructive. "But there are other hills around here that have potential as well." And while it will still be another two years before Cr Watts' view changes, Acciona's project still faces several hurdles, such as the route to be used to connect the turbines to the power grid at the Calder Highway.