Wind farm in Nundle faces uphill battle to convince residents

Submissions arguing for and against the Hills of Gold wind farm, developed by multinational utility company ENGIE, have been made to the Department of Planning and Environment (DPE), which is expected to make a recommendation to the NSW Independent Planning Commission within the next six to eight weeks.

At the core of the contention surrounding the wind farm is its potential impacts on local ecosystems.

UNE Dean of Geography and expert in riverine ecosystems Martin Thoms said there are five key areas of uncertainty that are either inadequately addressed or not mentioned at all in the project's Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

"EISs are really important planning tools to understand the risk of any development, and you've got to look at all sides," Mr Thoms said.

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These five areas include the presence of endangered ecosystems; the potential for disturbing migratory birds; disrupting the flows of headwater streams; reducing farming productivity from soil erosion; and the tainting of downstream rivers with eroded soil, including the Peel River, which runs through Tamworth and Gunnedah.

Ironically, he said, the green energy project could end up doing more harm to local ecosystems than the benefits of the project would offset, as many of the risks are exacerbated by the effects of climate change.

"The interesting thing is if you think about the potential changes to rainfall runoff, and then combine that with climate change, it becomes pretty worrying ... if you start interfering with the natural vegetation of the slopes, you're going to have a compounded effect, the rainfall runoff is going to be even more rapid," Mr Thoms said.

In response to the Leader bringing Mr Thom's concerns forward, ENGIE Senior Development Manager Meredith Anderson said the Hills of Gold wind farm is an ongoing project, one that "remains committed and available to respond to community and stakeholder feedback" as it develops.

According to Ms Anderson, ENGIE has undertaken multiple ecosystem assessments and significant changes have been made to the project as a result, including more recent changes Mr Thoms may not be aware of.

"As part of the Project Amendment submitted in November 2022, one turbine was removed and an additional 20 turbines were relocated ... reducing the risk of collision for bats, owls and other birds," Ms Anderson said.

To avoid disturbing the Peel River, she said the company will consider installing drainage rock blankets and culverts at key watercourse crossing points which will be identified at the "detailed design phase".

"Since the lodgement of the original Environmental Impact Statement, specialist consultants were engaged to complete additional geotechnical investigations across the proposed wind farm site and transmission line corridor, while environmental consultants undertook a new site soil assessment," Ms Anderson said.

But ENGIE isn't the only one reaching out to specialist experts.

Hills of Gold Preservation Inc (HOGPI) is the most vocal group among many members of the Nundle community who say the proposed site for the project will never be suitable.

Aware that the DPE will soon make its recommendation to the NSW Independent Planning Commission, members of HOGPI recently crowd-funded their own peer reviews of potential noise, soil and water impacts to submit to the state government.

The group said their three reports prove the project's EIS documents are lacking.

The worst assessment came from Land and Soil Capability Director Greg Chapman's Soil and Land Amendments Review, which has made members say the environmental risks could be impossible to reduce.

"I don't think we'll ever be convinced. We've been looking at this for five years and there's an enormous wealth of local knowledge among our members. Some of our members have been running farms here for 40 years and they know the climate and how the landscape responds to brutal climatic events," HOGPI Secretary Megan Trousdale said.

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