Western Victoria Transmission Network Project: Residents slam proposed power lines
Western Victorian residents have slammed a plan to build monster power lines through their land, which will mainly benefit Melburnians and could endanger firefighters. But they have a better idea.
Ballarat
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Furious residents across Western Victoria have come out in force against a plan to build power lines through their land.
Dozens of farmers and locals aired their disgust at an AusNet community consultation session held in Ballan on Thursday afternoon over the Western Victoria Transmission Network Project.
AusNet has been awarded the contract to construct the 190km power lines, which will run from Bulgana to North Sydenham to share renewable energy with the rest of the state.
The Moorabool and Central Highlands Power Alliance represents about 12 community groups in the area being considered for the upgrade.
“We support renewable energy, we just don’t think this is the right way to go about and ruin our communities,” chair Emma Muir said.
“This is a real concern to us, we haven’t been listened to we haven’t been spoken to, we’ve never been engaged, we’ve just been told.”
Ms Muir who owns a farm in Myrniong said the power lines posed an environmental and safety risk to the communities they will run through.
“They’re dangerous, some of these properties will and towns will be locked in on a bushfire day by these powerlines, they fall over and fell over at Cressy in July,” she said.
“It will ruin the landscape and aesthetics to the country … plus it will devalue their land, some of the local real estate agents are saying a 60 per cent devaluation.”
A CFA volunteer said the power lines could make her job fighting fires more dangerous if sparks flew into the towers, helping a fire to spread quickly.
Farmer Hannah Grima said if the transmission lines weren’t built underground the farming industry will be ruined.
“I’d love to get my own property and work that myself, if these towers come up I just don’t think we will be able to do any of that,” she said.
Ms Muir said the alliance was interested in discussing other options for the transmission lines, including building them underground along public not privately owned land.
“Why are we as communities paying for energy to go to Melbourne which we get no benefit of, wouldn’t it be more equal if everybody gave up something and it ran along the freeway,” she said.
“It’s going to cost more money on our power bills, I’m happy to pay a couple of dollars extra a year if that all it takes.”
An Australian Energy Market Operator spokesman said there was insufficient capacity in the existing transmission network in western Victoria.
“Without this capacity, generators connecting to this part of the network will become increasingly constrained, reducing their ability to export power to the network, and impacting electricity costs for Victorian consumers over the long term,” he said.
An AusNet spokeswoman said the scope of the project was to build an overhead transmission line
“We’ve been engaging with the community and will continue to understand and address concerns,” she said.
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