Landholders fear power lines could be 50m from their homes

News of a 10km deviation in the high voltage lines that will link the multibillion-dollar Borumba pumped hydro project to the Qld power grid has generated new fears for property owners in its path. Watch the video:

News of a 10km deviation in the high voltage transmission lines from Borumba Dam, across the Gympie region, has generated new fears over how close they will be to farmers’ homes.

The 500kV transmission line is planned to connect the proposed $14.2bn, 2GW Borumba Dam pumped hydro facility to Woolooga substation, a key component in achieving Qld’s 70% renewable energy target by 2032.

When asked how close the transmission lines would come to existing homes within the corridor, Powerlink said it was working with landholders to “maximise the distance between homes and transmission lines”.

This has made landholders more nervous, with some saying Powerlink has told them the lines could be as close as 50m from their homes.

Mardi Brady’s small property in Blacksnake is 800sq m, and lies neatly within the proposed transmission line corridor.

Mardi Brady stands on Godber Rd a few hundred metres from her property. Her property has always been in the path of the transmission lines. If the transmission lines run through her property, they are sure to be visible from her house and potentially only a few hundred metres away. Picture: Christine Schindler

She said should the lines go through her property, they would be visible from her house, which has a 360-degree view to her boundary.

Ms Brady invested her life savings into her small hobby farm three years ago – it was her retirement dream.

She said even with the transmission lines proposal the land has devalued dramatically.

“The worst thing is I don't want to stay, but I can’t afford to leave,” she said.

In the last three years she has been through floods, fires and drought, but natural disasters pale in comparison to the anxiety of possibly living beneath pylons and high voltage power lines.

Ms Brady said she did not want to live alongside the transmission lines, but she could not leave the home and lifestyle she saved her entire life for.

Her property has remained in the path of the transmission lines despite being close to the new deviation.

The 10km deviation of the route between Oakview and Blacksnake has meant at least 14 houses along the southern end of Rossmore Rd will be well clear of the transmission lines.

Instead it is the northern reaches of the road that will be affected, long-term local resident and farmer Melvin Simpkins said.

Two weeks ago Mr Simpkins got a phone call from Powerlink letting him know the transmission lines would now cross his 323ha property near Rossmore and Cemetery Rd where their son and his family live.

The news has thrown the Simpkins’ immediate plans for building sheds and structures for their quarter horses and cattle into disarray.

He said there were two possible routes for the lines to take: one would fall between 100-500m from the house and run through a small valley on the property; the other would cross on the other side of two hills, out of eyesight from the house.

Lesley and Melvin Simpkins stand outside the house on their property on Rossmore Rd. They fear Powerlink's transmission lines will come within a few hundred metres of their home. Picture: Christine Schindler

If the transmission lines come, his son and family would want to move, relocating the horses and repurposing the land, he said.

As they only found out about the transmission lines two weeks ago they are not sure what they will do with it if they are built, as they have always planned on passing the property down to their children.

While Powerlink is offering a leading compensation package, Ms Brady said no amount of compensation would give back what she had already lost.

“I don't understand why we don’t have a choice. I feel that we’ve worked hard, we pay our taxes, we pay our rates, why are we being told this is happening?” Ms Brady said.

“We should have the right to say no, this is our property. We’re not happy.”