LOCATION/TYPE

NEWS HOME

[ exact phrase in "" • results by date ]

[ Google-powered • results by relevance ]


Archive
RSS

Add NWW headlines to your site (click here)

Get weekly updates

WHAT TO DO
when your community is targeted

RSS

RSS feeds and more

Keep Wind Watch online and independent!

Donate via Paypal

Donate via Stripe

Selected Documents

All Documents

Research Links

Alerts

Press Releases

FAQs

Campaign Material

Photos & Graphics

Videos

Allied Groups

Wind Watch is a registered educational charity, founded in 2005.

News Watch Home

New approach to wind farms 

Credit:  By SAM PAINE | Mudgee Guardian | March 21, 2014 | www.mudgeeguardian.com.au ~~

Windfarms including the nearby Uungula Wind Farm and Crudine Ridge Wind Farm will now be handled as state significant developments, in a move the state government says will restore “the community’s appeal rights in the development application process”.

The chief change in the process is that people will now have the right of appeal after the decision is made to approve or deny the project.

Wind farms were previously classed as critical infrastructure, with their approval decided by the Minister for Planning. As state significant developments, Uungala and Crudine will be assessed by Planning and Infrastructure and the independent Planning Assessment Commission.

“The projects will now be considered as State Significant Developments instead of being dealt with under the Part 3A transitional provisions left over from Labor,” Planning and Infrastructure Minister Brad Hazzard said.

“Under Labor there were no appeal rights for the community or the proponent and decisions were made by the Minister with no right of appeal.”

The two local windfarms are both in the midst of the approval process; Crudine is at the assessment phase, having made its responses to public submissions on the project, and Uungala has submitted a draft Environmental Assessment and been asked to make alterations to it.

Mr Hazzard said the new system would ensure “major projects like wind farms would be considered in an open and transparent process”.

“The community can have confidence that their voices will be heard on wind farm projects in NSW and that projects will be assessed and decisions made at arm’s length from the Government,” he said.

Wind farm projects lodged under the Labor state government were initially assessed under Part 3A of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act, until the current state government in 2011 introduced a system that would see the decisions delegated to Planning and Infrastructure and the independent Planning Assessment Commission.

Windfarms were given a deadline to submit their Environmental Assessments to be assessed under the former system.

“The deadlines on these proposals have not been met so the Government will now transition them (as State Significant Developments) to the Liberals-Nationals planning system that stresses openness and transparency and the community’s voice being heard,” Mr Hazzard said.

Any elements of the assessment process that have already been undertaken will not need to be repeated. For example if the project has already been on public exhibition, it will not need to be re-exhibited.

The nine proposals now falling under the new conditions are Yass Wind Farm, Crookwell Wind Farm, Rye Park Wind Farm, Liverpool Range Wind Farm, Paling Yards Wind Farm, Rugby Wind Farm, Bango Wind Farm, Crudine Ridge Wind Farm and Uungula Wind Farm.

Flyers Creek Wind Farm approved by the Planning Assessment Commission in the Central West was the final wind farm proposal which complied with the earlier requirements and was asseessed under the former system.

Source:  By SAM PAINE | Mudgee Guardian | March 21, 2014 | www.mudgeeguardian.com.au

This article is the work of the source indicated. Any opinions expressed in it are not necessarily those of National Wind Watch.

The copyright of this article resides with the author or publisher indicated. As part of its noncommercial educational effort to present the environmental, social, scientific, and economic issues of large-scale wind power development to a global audience seeking such information, National Wind Watch endeavors to observe “fair use” as provided for in section 107 of U.S. Copyright Law and similar “fair dealing” provisions of the copyright laws of other nations. Send requests to excerpt, general inquiries, and comments via e-mail.

Wind Watch relies entirely
on User Funding
   Donate via Paypal
(via Paypal)
Donate via Stripe
(via Stripe)

Share:

e-mail X FB LI TG TG Share


News Watch Home

Get the Facts
CONTACT DONATE PRIVACY ABOUT SEARCH
© National Wind Watch, Inc.
Use of copyrighted material adheres to Fair Use.
"Wind Watch" is a registered trademark.

 Follow:

Wind Watch on X Wind Watch on Facebook

Wind Watch on Linked In Wind Watch on Mastodon