Farmers turn green over mine

Sunday Mail Brisbane
Sunday 11/4/2010 Page: 35

FARMERS at war with a proposed open-cut coal mine will fight it by offering their land for wind and solar farms. In what they hope will be a model for other mining-affected communities, the people of Felton, 30km southwest of Toowoomba, have hired a consultant to investigate their green energy potential. The community will use the report to lobby the State Government to reject Ambre Energy's coal mine in favour of renewables. Friends of Felton spokesman Rob McCreath said farmers would welcome wind turbines and solar farms on their land.

"Faced with the prospect of a massive dirty open-cut mine we'd much rather have wind and solar," he said. Green energy consultant Trevor Berrill estimated 48 turbines could share Felton Valley's ridges with grazing cattle, and another 10sq km of land could host large solar thermal infrastructure, together producing enough green energy to power 160,000 homes. Mr Berrill said this community model could be extended throughout Queensland and negate the need to dig new coal mines. He said green energy was economical to produce if the carbon costs of coal energy were taken into proper account.