Walla Walla Solar Farm

I am in support of the Walla Walla Solar Farm as it will create jobs and be a great potential cash injection for not only Walla but other smaller towns in the region such as Burrumbuttock which is where my husband and his family are from. I also think it is important to invest in clean renewable energy to help combat climate change and have an alternate energy source before we run out of fossil fuels.

We should be using more renewable energy sources ie solar

My partner and I have family locally in the area, who have been successfully farming for generations. Given the significant personal meaning of the local area to my parter and our families we had wanted to have our wedding at Orange Grove, though given the news of the potential solar farm nearby we had concerns and as a result are not having our wedding there and having to look into alternate options not in the area.

I object to the Walla Walla Solar farm as our family business that I work for will lose hay contracting work. This is worth thousands per year and over 30 years is a lot of money. Agricultural jobs will be lost and other farm contractors will also miss out on work. I would not ever want to work for a solar plant and the jobs that it creates are short term anyway.
This project is very wrong as the land especially the Bega Plains property is very good farm and cropping land and has produced large amounts of hay .
Solar plants should be on poor land that can not grow anything. The drought will make less hay and grain available for food and this area can provide for food needs for our country while others can not. This land should be kept for food.
There is no way that this land will be able to carry the same amount of sheep without hay and grain. There will just be a few sheep grazing for hazard reduction. I do not believe that anything but weeds will grow under the panels which is not good for sheep to eat. They need good food.
I am worried that if we get a flood the waste from construction will flow down back creek then to the Billabong which goes through our place. I think this construction will be damaging to the environment.
My cousins own "Orange Grove" and I worry about how this will affect their function and wedding business as they will not get bookings especially with construction. I also wonder how this will affect their farm and do not think there is enough research to prove that there will be no impact to the neighbours from heat or other impacts.
I think it will affect the mental health of people in the area, these solar plants have caused conflict in our community and I dont think it is needed as we have strong agriculture and do not need to remove that. I have cousins that will have to look at a substation from their home and solar plants are ugly industrial plants that look nothing like the country area that we have and they have families.
I am also a RFS volunteer in the brigade that looks after this area and we know that solar plants are not safe workplaces with electricity and entrapment issues and we are being told that we will not enter if a fire is in the plant and that it will be fought from the edges. This will definitely make our area less safe, neighbours will be at an increased fire risk and maybe also the towns. It is too large an area not to fight a fire. RFS brigades do not have HAZMAT. This needs to be looked at as part of the approval not just a fire plan.
I definitely object to all solar plants being proposed in our shire including the Walla Walla Solar Farm.

I object to the Walla Walla Solar Farm as I work for Trish and Adrian Feuerherdt at Orange Grove Gardens Function Centre when they have weddings and may lose my employment.
This solar farm would most likely affect wedding bookings as the function centre will look over an industrial and construction zone. I would not want to have a wedding looking at solar panels and I do not think many other people would either.
Trish and Adrian have worked very hard to grow this business which brings many people to our local area with both the wedding business and accommodation in the cabins. This will be lost.
I think there will be many other issues that may impact the area if a solar farm goes ahead. My family operates a contract hay making business and will be affected by a loss of income as this work will no longer be required. I know of other contractors that will also lose year in year out work. Farm supply businesses and machinery dealers will lose sales
The area of the Walla Walla Solar Farm includes productive cropping land that our area is lucky to have when most of the rest of the state is in drought. This development will reduce the amount of hay and grain available for livestock as well as agricultural work in our area through the loss of grain.
Animals, birds and trees will be impacted with such a big construction and loss of habitat. The back creek flows through to our property and I wonder if we had a flood whether waste will end up on our property or in the Billabong creek where this flows to.
Our family lives nearby and is close to another proposed solar farm and we are very scared about other issues like bushfires, heat impacts to neighbouring crops, how this will affect livestock, health and very importantly the mental health of our community.
I was called in to my principals office at school and told I was not allowed to talk about the solar plants. These solar farms have created a very stressful situation in our community with people fighting and it is really all about money which is wrong. We should be thinking about feeding people not making money. I am now in year 12 and do not need extra stress in my schooling.
I know the mental stress of thinking about how my families home may be totally changed forever surrounded hundreds of thousands of solar panels. Our family has worked very hard to build a great home and make ourselves strong to cope with farming issues and I understand that the neighbours to this development will see the same problems.
I believe that the best farms in our country should kept as farms for food and solar farms should be put on land that cannot grow anything.

It is important to support renewable energy options. As I work with children in this town I think it will be beneficial for not only the local community but for the students to see active solutions to climate change.

I was given the opportunity to work at Orange Grove Gardens as a young teenager and kick started my career in the Hospitality industry, I was taught the skills and confidence to continue my career and have worked along side many other young kids that were given the same opportunity. As a young person living in a remote rural area the job options are next to none, if the proposed plan goes ahead I do believe Orange Grove may lose business which in turn affects employment and local trade.

We need sustainable energy sources, solar makes perfect sense

I Josh Godde have worked on two large solar farms in a small community for last 12 months and have seen the huge benifits to them.
With talking to the locals over the last 6 months they are more then happy with solar farm being in there town .
This solar farm will have huge positive impact on the community such as local contractors,pubs & clubs,shops,caravan park,motel,sporting clubs,
Mybe we should be asking more local business how they fell about it.
Josh Godde,

As a electrocution and ASP , the more solar we can generate and use the better, as more and more government utility are private the harder it is to do day to day things
We have to jump through hoops now to get the power put on it's never used to be this hard rip we absolutely have to remain Australian owned especially on our own utilities and main infrastructure it's Madness that we should be selling off to any other foreign company

I have considered the proposed development and comment …

Visual and Environmental amenity
A significant part of the argument against the solar developments in Greater Hume Shire relates to degradation of the visual amenity.

Naturally, adjacent neighbours will not be “happy” with change and consent (if given) must be conditional on robust measures to minimise the visual impact.

Should there be solar development in Greater Hume Shire, then (apart from the colocation with the electricity distribution network) the currently proposed Culcairn and Walla Walla developments would be the most suitably located impact on the wider community.

I have seen numerous of solar farms. Whilst they are clearly visible, it is my view that they are much less obtrusive than being suggested by some sections of the community.

I would suggest that the greatest change to the visual and environmental amenity occurred 150 years ago when the land was first cleared of its native woodland vegetation. Unfortunately, change has to occur with human development.

Loss of Agricultural Land
With respect to the Walla Walla and Culcairn proposals, I believe that the land in question is less than the best, prime farming land in Greater Hume Shire. Mostly, it is low lying and, in a wet year, prone to water logging. Much of it is more suitable for grazing than farming.

Long Term
One can never be sure about where the future lies in energy generation. It is entirely possible that solar is no longer needed in 25 or 30 years’ time. For this reason, it is important that if consent is given, a robust remediation plan be considered. It must be certain that at end of life, the solar assets are completely removed, including any below ground asset. This should be by way of a bond provided to government (or similar).

Council and Community Opinion
While I am not in a position to fully gauge the sentiment of the wider community, I believe that there is more support for the proposal than the media and social media commentary would suggest. The debate has become quite divisive which has created an environment in which it is difficult for individuals to express their views where they may support (or in fact be neutral) the solar proposals.

I am not sure that the decisions passed by Greater Hume Shire Council reflect the type of leadership that we would hope from our local government body. It seems that the decisions have been based more on the emotion rather than supporting sound development and a sustainable future.

Environmental Sustainability.
The human impact on our planet requires careful consideration. It is contingent on us all (as individuals and at various levels of government) to commit to measures that improve sustainability. Solar power is an important (essential!) part of the energy equation in the foreseeable future. No one ever wants development across their fence and it is governments that must step up to make the difficult decisions. This type of development needs to be welcomed. This does not mean that we do not acknowledge the negatives along the way, but rather recognise that change and transition has to satisfy the collective good.

Community Development
I believe that the injection of money and activity into Greater Hume Shire should be welcomed. This type of development brings some “new economy” activity to our shire. Just like the last 100 years has seen social and economic change, so too will the next 100. Solar development is one of those changes.

I understand that one or more of the proposed developers have committed to

Landowners Rights
I believe government and the community must carefully examine how they can restrict the activities of individuals on their own land. There is a balance between what a person can do on their own land where it may impact others. In this case, a number of claims made by those opposing the solar development are simply not correct (for example, it has been claimed publicly, that a neighbour adjacent to a solar farm cannot farm to his/her boundary). However, on balance, it is hard to see how the decision could be made to restrict a person’s ability to undertake solar development on their land.

As a community it is my belief we should take pride in supporting renewable energy resources.
We can not have it both ways and object to coal mines like Adani and in the next breath object to solar farms and renewable energy.
I believe that the solar farm would be terrific for our town during the construction faze and to a lesser extent during the operational years through the workers that it will bring into our community assisting our growing hospitality industry.
I do not understand how anyone can object to what a farmer decides to do with his land, they have a vested interest in protecting thier own property, and a right to make business decisions on how their land can best serve them (providing enviromental laws are advered to). From what I have seen the company responsible for building this facility are commited to helping the environment and the aesthetics of the facilty for its immediate neighbours.
I can not be more supportive of this and will be very dissapointed of the noisy minority prevent a well planned and positive project in our community from going ahead.
I am happy to be contacted to offer further support if it is required.
Yes to progress!

As a supporter of renewable energy I whole heartedly welcome projects such as this. One of the easiest ways for us to slow climate change has to be by reducing the emissions created by burning fossil fuels for electricity generation. We live in one of the sunniest countries in the world and solar power is clean quiet and free. More clean renewal solar energy generation is exactly what we should be focusing on. This project will generate enough clean renewable energy to supply over 90,000 homes and in doing so will facilitate a reduction in carbon emissions of more than 520,000 tonnes per year. That alone is enough reason for this project to go ahead. If you need more positives, the construction phase will create hundreds of jobs, and the finished project will sustain Around 20 FTE positions. The project can coexist with sheep grazing and is using less than 15 percent of the available grazing land.
Having read through the EIS it is evident fire management, environmental management and community engagement are key considerations for the developer. Working with local Landcare groups, the Project will consider and enhance biodiversity by planting to create corridors, enhancing farm dams and placing nesting boxes throughout the site.
This project and and others such as this are an excellent way for Farmers to diversify and become more resilient to the impacts of drought.
Solar panels are a low lying and quiet energy generation system. When compared with the impact that mining coal for energy generation has on the landscape, and ecosystem by destroying and consuming massive amounts of land; solar energy generation comes out well on top. It’s land requirements and disturbance to that land are extremely low especially when compared to the destruction and negative environmental impacts caused by coal mining. This solar farm should absolutely be allowed to go ahead! Hopefully it will be the start of many more similar projects Australia wide; sustainable energy for a sustainable world . Let’s start local to help in the global fight towards a zero emissions carbon neutral future!

I have recently been married at the most wonderful venue and loved every minute of my time spent at Orange Grove Gardens. I am not opposed to the concept of a solar farm at all, however I am concerned by the proposed location. I honestly believe both the construction and the placement of the farm will have a dire effect of Orange Grove Gardens. I am worried that this picturesque venue will lose out if the plan goes ahead.
If I were to visit looking for a possible wedding location while the construction of the solar farm was taking place I would be deterred by the noise, dust and dirt, loud machinery- being honest I would have gone somewhere else rather than risk that it won’t be “that bad” on the big day. My photos would be a major concern, from a bride’s perspective those photos meant so much to me and if I saw a solar farm instead of the beautiful natural landscape the venue currently offers id be crushed. I truly believe once the construction is complete most potential brides will see it as an eyesore and most likely decided on an alternative location, there are loads to choose from in the area (I’m from Albury).
I also worry about the proposed size, it’s massive! And I understand why its beneficial to have it that size but the land proposed for it is gold for farming. In fact I believe it’s one of the best farming areas in the district, given the drought at the moment that’s high praise.

In short, if this solar farm is placed as close to Orange Grove Gardens as has been proposed they wouldn’t have had my business if I was still venue scouting. It sounds harsh to say because I was so happy with the wedding I had, the staff were amazing and Trish runs a great venue! I would expect they will loss a lot of business from brides in future if this goes ahead. In my opinion that’s simply not fair on all the hard workers there. I really don’t have a problem with solar farms, I just think it shouldn’t be placed were it’s been suggested.

I am currently an employee of Orange Grove Gardens. I believe the Walla Walla Solar Farm project will affect bookings for this venue especially in relation to weddings due to the large construction zone and visual impact that the solar panels will have from the rear deck of the function centre. This business also now includes cabins which are regularly booked providing additional employment to the wedding business due to the beautiful location and the agricultural views. Increased trade is also seen to the local area of Culcairn and Walla Walla through the tourism brought about by this business.
The loss of agricultural work also will be significant and over a long period of time in comparison to the jobs created by the solar development which are predominantly only short term. I do not believe that these jobs will be filled by local people from local towns and believe that the short term construction employment will be seen from the regional area with experts brought in from afar. My relations will lose agricultural contracting work of a significant value which in the past has been on an annual basis.
I believe that the implication that sheep grazing will continue to a capacity near the current production levels is incorrect as am aware of the cropping ability of the land. Feed will be significantly reduced without the ability to produce hay and grain for fodder.
The surrounding farmland is known to be productive and will be put at risk from various impacts from the solar development through from construction to operation of the facility. There are concerns about heat, flooding, loss of environment and aesthetic impact to neighbours. Research in relation to the impacts is not sufficient and suggests further research is required based on the large scale and local environment to ensure these solar farms do not affect prime agricultural land in areas of reliable production.
The company is not adequately screening the development from the visual amenity and the mental health of surrounding neighbours should be a consideration with such industrialisation to the community. I am concerned that the photos in the EIS do not adequately reflect the impact to neighbours particularly in relation to construction and the substation. Significant screening with mature trees, not tubestock, would be required to mitigate the visual impact to Orange Grove Gardens. I am significantly concerned that the loss of old mature trees cannot be replaced by small tubestock which take many years to grow. In addition I do believe there will be a serious environmental impact to the local flora, fauna and wildlife habitat.
I am also aware that there would be a serious risk to Bush Fire Brigade members as they are being advised of Workplace Health and Safety concerns in solar photovoltaic installations such as entrapment , high voltage and toxic fumes that will prevent them from entering. Fires would be contained on the outside of the facility and therefore an increased risk to neighbouring landowners and nearby towns will potentially occur. It is a worthy consideration that the disastrous Walla Gerogery bushfires occured in nearby proximity to this development and therefore increased anxiety may be evident should increased fire risk be apparent.
I believe that increased trucks moving through Culcairn and on local roads could cause increased risks within the towns eg school children and also cause road damage which will create a financial impact on Council.
Most importantly I believe that extremely large solar plants should be placed in arid non productive areas with little agricultural capacity and minimal impact on neighbouring communities. There are significant amounts of land in the west and north of NSW, and renewable energy zones that could be developed for renewable energy projects and the NSW Government should be undertaking serious infrastructure projects to allow this to occur.

1. I am a co owner of 92 hectare of farm land located at Schneiders Rd Walla Walla NSW proposed to be leased to FRV Services ( Australia ) Pty Ltd ( FRV) for the purpose of a solar farm. My main reason for agreeing to lease this farm land is because the project will make a significant contribution towards reducing the emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere but substituting renewable energy for fossil fuels to generate electricity.
2. There are also a number of other benefits for the local community generally . These include ;
(a) The provision of additional employment opportunities particularly during the construction phase.This will go towards offsetting the loss of employment following the recent closure of the Norske Skorge paper mill in Albury.
(b)The additional downward pressure on power prices to which this project will contribute. Renewable energy generates the cheapest form of electricity.This benefits all consumers.
(c) Contributing to the overall health of the local economy by the engagement of local suppliers and contractors wherever possible.
(d) FRV is a well established and responsible company. Its business model is to retain and operate the solar farm for its full life cycle. It therefore has a full focus on the local community and if the project proceeds will provide substantial and genuine benefits for our area in the long term.
3. While I understand and respect the views of objectors to the project , I make the following observations ;
(a) We will continue to graze sheep on the solar farm area at about 85% of its normal carrying capacity. This reflects the 15% area consumed by the solar farm infrastructure.Therefore the loss of agricultural production will be minimal.
(b) Following the redesign of the project by FRV all dams in the solar farm area on our farm will be retained and will continue to be utilised.
(c) Following extensive consultation with our immediate neighbours and the wider community , the EIS comprehensively addresses all issues concerning visual amenity,loss of trees and vegetation, fire controls, erosion and all other environmental issues.
(d) I am aware from other farmers with large scale solar farms on their properties , that in drier times their carrying capacity is greater than the district average because of the additional pasture growth from moisture from condensation from the solar panels and the additional shading from the panels.
(e) In regard to property values all properties adjoining us are commercial farming properties . The valuation evidence in the EIS shows that solar farms do not have a negative impact on their productivity or their value.
(f) The fact there is no Australian research on the island heat effect is of no concern . The international scientific evidence provided By FRV on this issue is first class and equally applicable to this project because all solar farms around the world are technically similar.
(g) On the issue of rehabilitation of our property back to its original state , we are fully satisfied with the contractual obligations which will guarantee that the land is fully restored by FRV at the end or earlier termination of the lease.
4. The additional income we will receive from the lease of our land , if the project proceeds, will enable us the further invest in our farm to increase its overall productive capacity. With reference to adapting to climate change we will be able to implement progressive farming practices including carbon farming , with a view to becoming carbon neutral in the near term.

I am a registered marriage celebrant who has been conducting weddings at the neighbouring property Orange Grove for a number of years. Couples choose Orange Grove because of it’s beautiful and tranquil landscape. I have seen this business grow over the years and is now providing valuable employment opportunities in a struggling rural community. The owners have invested heavily in making the venue a sought after one in the region.The site of the proposed solar farm is going to have considerable visual and physical impact on the wedding site and I believe that couples will go elsewhere for their weddings. This will be a financial loss to the owners with a commensurate loss in the value of their business and loss of jobs in a region where they are scarce

Please see attached document

I object to the Walla Walla Solar Project

I am in support of the project beause ;
1. It makes a significant contribution towards the reduction of greenhouse emissions into the atmosphere.
2. It contributes greatly to the economic health and well being of the local economy by providing significant job opportunities during construction,engaging local contractors and suppliers wherever possible and providing ongoing employment and work for contractors and suppliers during the year 30 life of the project .
3.After extensive community consultation , FRV has made adjustments to the project to meet community concerns , which have been incorporated into the EIS. Accordingly the impact of the project on immediate neighbours and the wider community has ben mimimised , if not in some cases eliminated.
4. Because sheep will continue to be grazed on the solar farm area at about 85% of the normal carrying capacity, the loss of agricultural production will be minimal.
5.The income received from the lease of the farm land to FRV, will enable the land holders to reinvest in their farms to lift their overall productivity , including implementing developing farming practices will will enable them to adapt to climate change. It will also enable them to deal with the seasonal and price cycles associated with agriculture.