Spicers Creek Wind Farm

I Object to Spicers Wind Electricity Generating Works & BESS for the following reasons:-
These 117 Wind Turbines - 258m high are a huge bird & bat killing nightmare & totally unacceptable, toxic contamination risk - shedding Bisphenol A - which is lethal to young children & as toxic as blue asbestos - over our precious land & water.
The BESS 400 MW/“with up to 1,800 megawatt-hour (MWh) storage capacity” is an incapable, toxic pile of filthy lithium Batteries that will be a pile of toxic contaminating waste in only 7-10 years or less if it explodes or catches fire & poisons the air.

Twiggy Forrest’s Squadron Energy is an unreliable, weather dependent, toxic disaster for Australia which will rip-off Australian people through totally wasted, astronomically costly, unjust subsidies.

This essential 17,731 ha of Primary Production FOOD producing land is vital as a great crop growing area - not for unethical, electronic garbage that Dubbo Council is already irresponsibly illogically overloaded with!
Spicers Creek Wind EG Works + BESS would create unethical hosting issues for Dubbo & Warrumbungle Councils, cause huge Public Health & Safety, Fire, Contamination & National Security Risks & make us reliant on the Chinese Communist Party for our power.
Australians deserve far superior Australian Base-Load Power NOT this useless junk!

Objection reasons in attached files

I wish to object to the expansion of the Pipers Creek Wind Farm on several counts.
- the sheer size of these turbines is totally out of context with the surrounding landscape and farm land.
The blade at its highest point is over 250 metres into the air. This will dwarf most of the landscape and is visual unacceptable.
- the roads and surrounding infrastructure can't support their installation or decommisioning when the time comes.
- there is now evidence that these turbines can create their own rain shadows resulting in the loss of moisture impacting on agricultural land.
- inability of aircraft to properly fight bush fires if required.
- destruction of bird life being caught in the blades
- devalue our land as has been suggested by numerous real estate agents around Mudgee
- these turbines are now environmentally friendly. How are they reused once their life span is over.
- they rely on massive subsidies and as a tax payer this money can be better spent on more efficient green energy.
- What happens if the company goes broke as this energy source becomes outdated. Who is responsible for them
- There needs to be a lot more research into all of the above particularly the change in weather patterns and the potential emissions given off by these blades.
I also reserve the right to make further comment on this project in the months and years ahead.
Thanks
Paul Gregg
3263 Yarrabin Rd
Twelve Mile
Mudgee

I object to the proliferation of wind turbines and associated transmission lines in the Central West Orana REZ including from the proposed Spicers Creek Wind Farm.
This area is a bushfire tinderbox waiting to ignite.
Black Saturday fires were sparked by transmission lines. Yass Wind Farm fire was sparked by transmission lines. Recent fires in Canada & Hawaii were also sparked by transmission lines. New transmission line infrastructure is required to connect up this proposal to the grid.
If this project proceeds, the wind farm and hosting landowners must be solely he accountable & responsible for compensation for damages to surrounding properties if a fire spreads from their site. They must provide evidence of e.g. $20 Billion insurance premiums to cover damages to surrounding properties & life from fire.
There will be loss of life resulting from the proliferation of “renewaBULLS” from bushfire.
On extreme fire danger days all farm equipment must not be used to reduce chance of sparking fires. Will wind turbine’s & transmission lines be turned off on extreme fire danger days too? What will this do for reliability of electricity in the grid?
How close can/will water bombing plane’s & helicopters get to wind turbines to fight fires & stop them from spreading to surrounding land? This is the most effective option for fighting fires that spread outside of a wind factory.
I do not consent to the loss of wedge tail eagles, bats & micro bats, insects and Koala populations etc from the central west.
I do not consent to BPA contamination off turbine blades contaminating landowners drinking rainwater tanks., soil and rivers systems with associated health impacts. There must be independent pre-construction BPA testing and ongoing testing throughout the life of the project.
I do not consent to altering of airflow ultimately altering precipitation levels and causing microclimate droughts for land surrounding turbines.
I do not consent to increasing EMF levels in the area impacting surrounding landowner’s families - with links to childhood leukemia.
I do not consent to the industrialisation of the central west and destruction of visual rural and natural amenity.
I do not consent to surrounding landowners having to pay a massive price via property devaluations “for the greater good”., if it is for the greater good then the Government should in fairness cover the cost of loss in property values paid for by all Australian taxpayers to share the burden fairly for the greater good.
Neighbour agreements with wind proponents include confidentiality / bush clauses which prevent understanding of adverse impacts on surrounding landowners. I do not consent to these clauses.
We must move to nuclear power generation located within decommissioned coal fire power stations, using the existing transmission line network.
The vast destruction of ecosystems- destroying the environment to save the environment is untenable and an absolute ecological disaster.
Wind turbines only generate power 30% of the time. This form of heavily subsidised electricity generation will not be sufficient to power the energy requirements of a modern industrialised society. It is leading Australia towards an economic and environmental disaster.

To whom it may concern

**I object to Spicers Creek Wind Factory proposal**

Removing 269.2 ha of native vegetation, whether you offset it or not is TOO MUCH!! Once you clear native vegetation, you can't rebuild it to its natural state. We need these native vegetation areas to retain for biodiversity of flora and fauna, we need connectivity of native vegetation for fauna to migrate, we need vegetation protection to prevent erosion and sediment run off into our water ways. Australia is a big place, wind turbines should be constructed on degraded land such as old mine sites.

Its also not acceptable of the 269.2 ha of native vegetation being cleared, of this, 96.9 ha conforms to Threatened Ecological Communities (TECs) under the BC Act. This should absolutely not be allowed!

I object to this project and suggest the developers go back to the drawing board to avoid any clearing of native vegetation.

Kind regards

Melanie Holland

My comments are contained in the attached Submission.

I object to this proposal on the grounds that it will create a significantly increased fire risk to the community as the presence of 117 turbines will eliminate the potential to use aerial water-bombing to combat bushfire events in this area. Even if turbines are stopped in the event of a bushfire, choppers and fixed-wing aircraft will not be able to fly in this area as smoke will visually obscure the blades to aircraft pilots.
During construction, large amounts of water are needed for the production of concrete for WTG foundations, as well as dust suppression of access roads. This use of water, up to 2 megalitres per turbine, is very concerning in the drought prevalent region.
Vegetation clearing for this project will also impact the availability of habitat for threatened species identified in the ecological studies. The cummulative impact of these large-scale projects will have ongoing environment consequences once the trubines are operational, given the audible and inaudible frequencies emitted from the turbines, which will detrimentally impact resident species that are highly likely to move from the area, disrupting the communities within the ecosystems.

Our family farm has held by 5 generations has prided itself on maintaining and improving soil and infrastructure including improved pasture and tree planting to protect and encourage bird migration and nesting. Spicers Creek borders our property and is the habitat of many native species of birds.
The proposed Spicers Creek Wind Farm will be definitely visible from the 2,500 acres that we call home and as well as the negative impact on the aesthetics and beauty of the local landscape which will undoubtedly reduce the value of our property which we continue to improve and work on a daily basis.
If we wanted sky scrapers on our doorstep - we would be living in the city!
The proposed Spicers Creek Wind Farm will also affect our next generation of farmers - 25 years of these wind turbines.... what happens to these eyesores at the end of their working lives? What about the environmental impact at that stage?
At this stage there are up to 117 wind turbines planned, are there more in the pipeline?

Hi
We can see from a windplanner photo and the the fact we live within 6km of the the proposed windfarm that we will have an extra 60 degree view of the wind farms from our house and 2 other residents on our 5300 acres of farm.
We also have a block approx 3 km from the proposed site at 1149 Oakey Creek road which would have considerable negative affects on investment and living standard on this site as a future proposal for a residence.
Having the turbines this close will affect ours and our kids potential in living in this location.
Existing towers to our west are currently in view when moving around our garden and other residents on our farm and also when traveling over our farm.
So we will have 2 lots of 60 degrees view of wind towers
We currently sit inside the band of affected residents that will have a visual aspect of the turbines but have no financial gains unlike the host farms.
I think there needs to be a benefit to all residents that are affected by the construction and visual aspect and change in our natural landscape for the life of the windfarm and on an annual basis.

Hello, I would like to submit my objection to this wind turbine farm, we brought our property three years ago there was no suggestion of these type of farms in our area. All the reading materials we can find from other wind turbines here in Australia and also overseas have very concerning findings, about what will happen with the turbines after they are decommissioned with regards to recycling and the ongoing repairs and maintenance. Also the problems with the shadowing and the sound problems for anyone living close. I’m also concerned about the findings about the fertility problems for animals around the turbines.

Kind regards
Karen Hartas

I reserve the right to add to this submission.

As a concerned local resident I believe that Wind Turbines are not the answer to renewable energy. Taking up a large areas of agriculture land and hoping to have the wind to turn them. For a place we call home we seem to be getting surrounded by them in every direction. It’s not what we wanted when we bought here. The open country views and dirt roads are all part of the charm
Kind regards Darren Hartas.
I reserve the right to add to this submission at further date.

While I support renewed energy programs, it is in the best interest of landholders to require the value of properties within the "shadow" or "viewing" area of the intended wind farm. Whether this will be impacted now or in the future of the project going forward. Will landholders be informed? if so, how?
As we are near retirement age with extensive work carried out over the years on the farm to build up production along with shelter belts and many other infrastructures being added. We are deeply concerned for the next generation and how it will impact them and or the future sale of our property if we choose to go this way.

My objections to the Spicers Creek Wind Farm are contained in the Submission attached.

My objections are numerous:
1. Noise Pollution Including Infrasound & Vibration – pose risk to human health and animal health.
Have you or do you know anyone who has suffered motion sickness? Infrasound is similar in that not everyone suffers from it, and you do not know if you will be a victim of infrasound or not and it builds up over a period of time.
The continuing whoosh whoosh whoosh of a turbine located on the same rock platform of a dwelling will cause the dwelling to vibrate. Think back to the tales of brick cottages some 5+ks from mine blasting sites, every time a blast occurred the ground vibrated and carried to any dwelling on the same rock platform.
2. Visual Pollution – loss of rural amenity and visual scarring. Regional residents give up 'city comforts' and are happy to do so, so why should they be burdened with factories, this is farm land:
3. Cost – factor in the cost of the loss of electricity travelling to the city, wouldn’t a city location within parks and perimeters of sporting fields be far more beneficial. The new style mini turbines that can be located on every city building would not be obtrusive in cities as would blend in.
4. Transparency&Compensation - As the Host Agreements impact every landholder/neighbour/resident within a 10km radius from each turbine, every landholder/neighbour/resident has a right to know the terms of the Host Agreements. After all it is the landholder/neighbour/resident who is most impacted by these Host Agreements not only during construction but for the next 25 to 30 years over the lifespan of the development and then the next 25 to 30 years over the renewed lifespan of the development until such times as the wind factory is decommissioned.
5. Community benefits scheme - Community benefits scheme should not exist. It is only a way of 'buying local councils to favour the projects'. The funds should go to those immediatley near and surrounded by the wind factories are they are the ones burdened and need the funds to instal double glaze windows for noise prevention and are visually impaired and suffer the whoosh whoosh whoosh sound for the life time of the factory;
6. Each landholder/neighbour/resident within a 10km radius of a turbine should be entitled to ANNUAL compensation equal to the combined value of the Landowner Host Agreements, as per the Host Landlease remuneration or per turbine remuneration. It is the landholder/neighbour/resident who is most impacted during construction and for the life of the development and the renewed life of the development until such time as the wind factory is decommissioned. Local councils should Invoice the relevant company annually with the cost of repair and maintenance of the roads attributed to the wind factory vehicles.
7. Annual Mandatory Compensation Calculation
Host Landowners Total Remuneration = $combined value annually
Compensation for every landholder/neighbour/resident within a
10k radius from a turbine receives Host Landowners
Total Remuneration = $combined value annually
This compensation should be mandatory, payable, legal and binding until such time as the last turbine of the wind factory has been decommissioned and the subject Host/s land rejuvenated and without limiting or restricting the landholder/neighbour/resident from making any claim or claims, in particular noise nuisance claims against the Wind Factory Company, Host Landowner, Council, Councillor, State Government or Minister.
8. Decommissioning – where will the turbine blades be buried? Currently it is and has been for sometime the only way to dispose of the blades.
9. To protect the landholder/neighbour/resident/Host from the ongoing sales of the wind factory and to ensure the appropriate removal of all turbines and ancillary equipment and the rejuvenation of the Host land at decommissioning, a million dollar bond per turbine to be paid by the proposed wind factory company with no part thereof to be released until all the turbines and ancillary equipment have been removed and the Host/s land rejuvenated. Such funds to be held in trust by State Government or local Government with the interest accruing and compounding.
Such bond money NOT TO BE RELEASED until every turbine, ancillary equipment and rejuvenation of land work has been carried out and the community consulting committee are satisfied that such works have been completed in a satisfactory manner for the landholder/neighbour/resident/Host.
This amount of funds will in all probability be insufficient to cover the cost of decommissioning in 25/30 years time but at least a bond.
10. Wind factcories change weather patterns and harden/compact the ground beneath them;
11. Where will the gravel, sand, cement and water come from for construction and at what cost and unavailability to local people?
12. Roads and bridges are simply not adequate even now for the weight burden trucks that will be required to bring in the equipment;
13. Regional shortage of doctors, nurses and all medical personnel, this will only impact the local communities even further; Incidents of ambulances not being able to get to destinations because roads are closed while deliverying blades, not good enough peoples lives are at risk.
14. It is the landholder/neighbour/resident who will lose: –
Devalue of land;
Noise pollution;
Visual scarring/pollution;
Flora and fauna that the landholder/neighbour/resident nuture;
Lifestyle gone for ever (depending on age of the landholder/neighbour/resident)

Spicers Creek Wind Farm is yet another example of private companies spruiking virtuous environmental claims while ignoring the local community, destroying local endangered flora and fauna, ignoring the cumulative impact, causing lasting environmental damage and destroying rural communities and agricultural production.

What bond has Squadron Energy paid to cover the restoration of the area at the end of the project's life?

Will the restoration of the area include the removal of the cement and underground cabling?

Please detail the calculation for the amount of green house gases this project will remove from the environment. Vague "motherhood" statements are not sufficient. We want to know exactly what is is included in this calculation.

Where will the waste for the project be stored? Waste generated during construction, during operation and end of life waste. How often does Squadron energy expect to replace blades? where is the disposal site for old blades?

Has Squadron Energy explained to the Land Hosts that they will be asked to commit their entire property to Squadron so as the proponent can raise the capital to build the project? Does the land host understand that once signed up their property is no longer their own? Day and night contractors will drive through their entire property, no notice required. Does the land host understand that while they may have "no go zones" for where turbines will be sited this does not mean they are not negatively visually impacted by neighbours turbines.

Put this project where the population wants it and where the environment is already industrial. Remove all subsidies to renewable energy and lets see then how many private companies are falling over themselves to destroy our regions.

I attach my submission regarding the Spicers Creek Wind Farm.

I am objecting the Spicers Creek Wind Farm project, I have attached my submission, outlining the reason for my objections and actionable recommendations. I appreciate for you taking the time to read my concerns and consider the impacts on myself, my family and my community.

The location of this proposed project is in close proximity to
Our family farm. Beside being a eyesore and ruining the natural serenity of the farming community. The project will significantly reduce argricultural farming in the community, create excessive traffic in the area as well as reducing land value. Who wants to buy a serene country property with views of wind turbines? Not to mention that there is already a wind farm close by that is barely seen working. I strongly oppose this project and believe it should be relocated due to the significant impacts it will have on the farming community.

I object to the Spicer's Creek Windfarm Project because it makes me feel sick when I think about what it will look like. I already feel sick when I look at the Maryvale Solar project and Bodangora Windfarm, they also make me sad because my community does not look like home anymore. I am also worried about my family because they are really sad about this. I will never agree to the windfarm being built because it is going to wreck everything we have worked hard to fix on our farms. Please do not build this project

The project is going to be within a close proximity to our family farm, between the running noise and harmonics of the fans as well as the devastating impact to views and decreased land values of our properties in the future I am completely opposed to this being built.