THE Red Gums of the Dundas Tablelands are potentially under threat from a massive wind farm development stretching from Tahara in the south to Nareen in the north, a distance of some 40 kilometres.
It is believed Danish company, European Energy – whose Australian headquarters are in East Melbourne – has been driving the scheme and has entered into confidentiality agreements with numerous land holders.
European Energy (EE) have been undertaking tests of wind speeds measuring up to 200 metres above ground level, using “Sodar” trailer-mounted and solar-powered devices manufactured by Australian company Fulcrum 3D.
One device has been spotted on a property off Foleys Lane near Gritjurk, sitting in a paddock about 100 metres away from the road.
They are marketed to the wind energy industry as “providing insights into the wind profile in various conditions and assessing sites for development suitability”.
It is unknown how many wind towers have been planned.
One farmer, who asked not to be named, said that he thought the thrust of the confidentiality agreements was to keep competing windfarm developers at bay.
He went on to add; “I am not convinced that it (the windfarm) will go ahead. It would need to be connected to the Yallourn to Portland main near Heywood which is already at peak capacity.”
Today’s wind towers have hub heights over 100 metres above ground level and rotor diameters of up to 130 metres (radius 65 metres), the whole reaching to some 165 metres.
These would be over 100 metres above the tops of the iconic red gums, impacting on one of Australia’s most beautiful landscapes.
There has also been concern about the impact on birdlife and bats which are killed by rotor blades which can have blade tip speeds of up to 260 kilometres per hour for a 52-metre blade length.
One study, in South Africa (Perold, V., Ralston-Paton, S., & Ryan, P. 2020), found that 30 per cent of bird species were being killed with an estimate of 4.6 birds and bats killed per turbine per annum, the most frequently represented category being diurnal raptors (eagles and hawks) which accounted for 36 per cent of carcases.
EE have admitted in a statement on their website “wind turbines can impact birdlife,” but claimed “most birds fly relatively close to the ground, below the blades of modern wind turbines” and pointed to environmental studies taken during the development phase of a wind farm which take into account species in the area.
EE were contacted for comment on the plan but did not respond before deadline.
