Posted by THE FACTS
The Victorian Government has recently approved a wind farm project in the Moorabool area.
WestWind Energy will build a 160-megawatt wind farm in the vicinity of Lal Lal, which is about 25 kilometres southeast of Ballarat.
The wind farm will comprise 64 wind turbines and will cost $350 million to build. 40 turbines will be stationed at Yendon and 24 will be stationed at Elaine.
Each turbine will be up to 85 metres high and will have a rotor diameter of up to 95 metres.
THE VIEWS
WestWind Energy overview of the Lal Lal Wind Farm:
“A wind farm of this size in this location will produce electricity at least equivalent to the annual consumption of 75,000 average Victorian households (there are about 35,000 homes in the City of Ballarat). This would displace more than 534,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions every year it operates or about 13 million tonnes over its 25 year life.”
Chief Executive Officer of Moorabool Council, Robert Dobrzynski, speaking to Moorabool Leader:
“While there is a net value benefit to all Victorians, I feel there is a disproportionate burden carried by people living in their vicinity. I urge residents to put their thoughts in writing, which is vital to discerning the degree of concern in the community. My personal view is I don’t believe there is enough weight given to residents’ quality of life. Clearly areas heavily populated may not be suitable for (the wind farm’s) development.”
Moorabool CEO’s wind-farm doubt
BREAKING IT DOWN
A) There will often be disagreement about the construction of a wind farm in close proximity to residences.
It is always a tough judgement call to weigh up the costs to locals against the wider net gain.
B) An offset deal – such as cheaper energy – should be offered to local residents to reduce the impact of the farm’s construction.
It wouldn’t fix everything but it might go some way to balancing the deal.
WHAT’S YOUR OPINION?
Sometimes the best locations for wind farms happen to be near residential areas. Should these be overlooked in favour of less effective areas?
Do the locals near the Lal Lal Wind Farm have reason to complain?
Has the consultation process been sufficient in the lead up to the project’s approval?
Is there another way of pleasing both local residents and businesses and WestWind Energy?