Flawed wind zone plan blows away coastal community
Labor needs to rescind its declaration of
the Hunter Offshore Wind Zone and fix its broken community engagement process
before reopening public consultation.
Impacted communities
are angry and for good reason: they face the prospect of 260-meter-high wind
turbines across their pristine coastline, following a flawed community
engagement process.
Public consultation
on the Hunter Offshore Wind Zone ran for 65 days between 23 February to 28
April in what many residents consider a sham process dressed up as a democratic
exercise.
It was residents of
Norah Head who first alerted me to the flaws in how the government was
consulting on the proposed zone, and I accepted an invitation to visit the
beachside community in early July.
There is no
substitute for meeting people face-to-face on the ground.
I learnt that most
locals didn’t even know that public consultations had already come and gone.
Locals told me about
unions co-opting the community engagement process to encourage positive
submissions.
I heard complaints
about limited in-person briefings and how those who attended them left with
more questions than answers.
Residents outlined deep
concerns about the environment, worries for the migration pathway of humpback
whales, the threat to local tourism businesses and risks to local commercial
and recreational fishers.
I even heard about
senior citizens unable to make written submissions as part of the process
because only digital submissions were being accepted.
Then, suddenly, a
breakthrough.
On the same day as
my visit, Minister Chris Bowen announced a ‘Community Engagement Review’ to
improve community engagement on renewable energy projects.
This was tantamount
to an admission on the part of the Albanese Government that its consultation
process was broken and needed to be fixed.
I welcomed the
announcement.
Finally, the
government was listening (or so it seemed).
But, much to my
dismay, Minister Bowen proceeded to declare the Hunter offshore wind zone the
following week.
The contradiction
was stark. Labor knew its community engagement process was flawed yet they
still used it as the basis for declaring an offshore wind zone, despite serious
community angst.
The region has been
taken for mugs, and they knew it.
Norah Head wasn’t
the only upset community.
In meeting nearly
150 local residents at an open community town hall meeting in Port Stephens’
Shoal Bay a few weeks ago, their anger was palpable.
Tourism operators
and professional fishers were furious; fearful that their businesses would soon
be capsized by enormous projects offshore.
They had been
steamrolled by the Albanese Government and the radio silence from their federal
Labor MPs rubbed salt into the wound.
Their stories were
similar to those at Norah Head: from residents not knowing about public
consultations to unanswered questions and concerns about the local economy and
environment.
One resident queried
what the future holds for his children if the risks the community foresaw were
to eventuate.
Despite these
communities being in Labor seats, only the Coalition has demonstrated a
willingness to hear and represent their interests.
I have thought long
and hard about the conundrum Labor has created with the Hunter Offshore Wind
Zone, and I’ve concluded that the zone is untenable in the absence of a social
license.
The issue isn’t with
offshore wind as a source of energy. Every technology has its pros and cons
which is why an “All-of-the-Above” approach is needed so a balanced mix of
technologies ultimately prevails.
Residents of these
communities want climate change tackled and they see renewables as part of the
solution, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to cop their way of life being
jeopardized or their local economy and environment trashed.
The crux of the
matter is that the government’s community engagement process in the Hunter was
unambiguously flawed and the proposed offshore wind zone lacks community
support.
Nevertheless, I
believe there’s a pathway to building the needed social license, but it
requires swift action on the part of the government.
Firstly, the
Minister’s declaration of the zone should be rescinded.
Secondly, the
community engagement process should be fixed through the review that has
already been commissioned, so long as a revamped process puts the community,
not investors, at the centre.
Thirdly, public
consultation should be reopened under the new process.
I appreciate the Albanese Government is
feeling desperate as renewable energy investment stalls and its 82% renewables
target looks dicey, but that’s no excuse for showing reckless indifference
towards regional communities.