Victoria and South Australia have recently reformed their policies on the construction of wind farms.
The Victorian Coalition Government took the first step in August 2010 to reform wind farm policies, by prohibiting the construction of a wind turbine within 2 km of an existing dwelling, unless there is written consent from the owner of the dwelling.
Additionally, the new policy stipulates that all national and state parks will be no-go zones for wind farms, as well as the Yarra Valley, Dandenong Ranges, Mornington Peninsula, Bellarine Peninsula, Great Ocean Road region, the Macedon and McHarg Ranges, and the Bass Coast.
In August 2011, Victorian Planning Minister Matthew Guy announced that the Coalition Government had delivered another election commitment through its approval of Amendment VC82 – which confers all wind farm planning control to local councils.
South Australia reforms wind energy policies
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In November 2011, the state of South Australia – the largest producer of wind energy in Australia, hosting 51 per cent of the nation’s installed capacity – also initiated its own change in wind farm policy. Tabled by former South Australian Premier Mike Rann, the new policies outline regulations to keep future wind farms away from densely-populated residential areas by banning wind turbines from within 1 km of any home.
Following on from the Victorian model, local councils will also become the key authority for assessing planning applications for new wind projects.
Industry and community response
On the arrival of these policy changes, the Clean Energy Council stated that hundreds of regional jobs would be the casualties of the Victorian policy, and approximately $3 billion in investment would be lost.
“Carving out large areas of the state as ‘no-go zones’ sends a clear message that Victoria is closed for business when it comes to future wind energy,” says former Clean Energy Council Chief Executive Matthew Warren.
The future of wind development in Victoria was a major focus at a national Community Power Conference, held in Bendigo in late November 2011. The conference was attended by multiple government representatives, industry associations and environmental organisations.
Keynote speakers included Matthew Warren alongside Chief Development Officer for Climate Change and Energy of Sydney City Council, Allan Jones and the Chief Executive Officer of community renewable energy organisation GV Community Energy, Geoff Lodge.
Approximately 130 delegates attended the two-day conference which showcased community-owned clean energy projects. On day two, delegates unanimously supported a motion calling on conference convenors to write to the Victorian Government to express their disappointment with the wind policy revisions and to ask the government to review its stance on the grounds of encouraging regional development.
The motion was put by the Director of the Centre for Sustainable Regional Communities at La Trobe University, Professor John Martin, and seconded by City of Greater Bendigo councillor Keith Reynard.
“We learnt from presenter Allan Jones, who is overhauling Sydney’s energy supply, that renewable energy generation plants were best located near population centres to maximise efficiency,” said Professor Martin.
The call for the wind farm policy change is one of four key actions identified in the post-conference communiqué.
Conference convenors say that they will urge the Federal Government and the Clean Energy Fund to set aside funds specifically for community-owned and localised renewable energy projects on the grounds of encouraging regional development and localising renewable energy generation profits.
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