I’ve been contacted by many landholders throughout Mallee concerned with the fast-tracking of the Victoria-New South Wales Interconnector West project.
The Victorian Labor Government has issued an order under the National Electricity (Victoria) Act 2005 enabling the Australian Energy Market Operator to begin preparatory and planning works for the new renewable energy infrastructure that links facilities in Victoria and NSW.
This is yet again an example of a Labor Government forcing through their plans, at a cost to the regions.
Farmers have been blindsided by the proposal, originally understood to be an upgrade to an existing 220kv line from Ballarat to Kerang via Bendigo.
In fact it will now miss Bendigo and impact almost exclusively Mallee.
Because, let’s face it, these 500kv double circuit transmission lines, each 400 metres apart and 80 metres high, over prime farmland that can be as close as 300 metres to residential homes, aren’t travelling through many Labor electorates.
But they will be in large part powering Australia’s cities.
Mallee farmers are not only feeding the nation, they are expected to do it while having their valuable land impacted.
While landholders will receive some compensation, from what I have been told by Mallee Local Government Areas, AEMO’s consultation on this process has been tokenistic and there has been little more detail provided to those who will be impacted.
What’s more, in a blow to transparency, Labor, The Greens and Independent David Pocock voted last week in the Senate against establishing an inquiry into the impact of transmission lines running through prime agricultural land.
The Victorian Farmers Federation has been able to get AEMO to extend the date for submissions by its members for feedback to Wednesday, April 19.
I know landholders are worried about what this will mean – from decreased land value which affects borrowing power, to loss of productivity capacity, as well as damage to crops during and after the installation of these lines across properties.
This saga is yet another example of country people being taken advantage of by city-based Labor Governments.
