A piece of a wind farm exhibiting seven wind generators within the Atherton Tablelands in Tropical North Queensland Australia
AGFORCE says it’s is more and more involved that delays to urgently wanted reforms to the Wind Farm Code may put agricultural landholders at probably crippling monetary threat.
Regardless of a evaluate of the Wind Farm Code final 12 months, it was disappointing that the Queensland Authorities has not launched any reforms to the Code since, AgForce stated in a media assertion issued this week.
The Queensland producer consultant physique is now urging any main producers contemplating internet hosting wind generators on their property to take additional precautions.
CEO Michael Guerin says it’s important that landholders not jeopardise the way forward for their farms by being too hasty to develop earlier than correct coverage protections are in place.
“AgForce recommends that any landholder contemplating internet hosting wind generators insist on a financial institution assure from the wind farm firm to cowl the price of decommissioning the wind farm,” Mr Guerin says.
“This covers you in case the wind farm firm fails to carry out the decommissioning themselves.
“It’s additionally the recommendation from the Australian Power Infrastructure Commissioner.”
Mr Guerin says that correct safety within the type of a financial institution assure should be sought by landholders earlier than any improvement takes place, to make sure they don’t seem to be probably burdened with the large prices related to decommissioning the wind farm.
“By way of necessity this method of safety was developed within the useful resource business to make sure that big rehabilitation prices weren’t worn by the taxpayer,” he says.
“We’re more and more involved that the Queensland Authorities has not addressed this in the identical approach that it introduced in laws for the useful resource business to make sure financial institution ensures cowl decommissioning as a part of the approvals course of.”
AgForce is conscious that the Queensland Authorities is at present reviewing the Wind Farm Code, and was anticipating a revised Code can be launched in early 2024.
“However we at the moment are in July and there’s no revised Code,” Mr Guerin says.
“AgForce made an in depth submission to the Queensland Authorities concerning the evaluate and would welcome the chance to have additional enter.
“It is vitally regarding to us that the Queensland Authorities has not resolved this problem, while on the identical time landholders are being inspired by wind farm corporations to signal agreements with out correct safety within the type of a financial institution assure.
“We don’t contemplate guarantees to pay into funds at some future date as constituting correct safety.”
He says the coverage reforms are notably wanted to safeguard in opposition to statements similar to these made just lately by former company adviser on Low Emissions Know-how and former Nationwide Chief Scientist Dr Alan Finkel that approvals processes for renewable power tasks are taking too lengthy (ABC’s Southern Queensland and Capricornia Rural Report, 16 July).
Dr Finkel advised the ABC that this gave different nations a aggressive benefit to fulfill their world emissions discount targets, and that Australia ought to comply with Europe’s instance by requiring {that a} undertaking is both accredited or denied inside 12 months and that regulators and the courts should take into consideration the overriding public curiosity in making the choice.
AgForce has severe considerations with the ideology that it doesn’t matter if native biodiversity is impacted if the overriding public curiosity is served to cut back world warming and world biodiversity injury.
Such statements fully ignore the rights of landholder who will likely be internet hosting these renewable power tasks and reinforces the thought for metropolis voters that destroying farmland is for the larger good,” Mr Guerin says.
Supply: AgForce
Trending Merchandise
