One certainty in discussions about extreme weather events is for a change in government policy for a greater reliance on renewable energy into the future.
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One such type of infrastructure is being built in the south-east of Hilltops surrounding the village of Rye Park. The development of both the Rye Park and Bango wind farms has started and they plan to generate power to feed into the high-voltage electricity network which bisects their areas.
Motorists travelling the Lachlan Valley Way between Boorowa and Yass would have observed the construction of a new road leaving east from the main road into paddocks at the shire boundary. This is the early construction phase of the Bango wind farm development.
Construction of the Rye Park wind farm is to begin next year. Between the two wind farms, there will be more than 130 turbines up to 200m in height. They will have a marked visual presence on the landscape.
The combined renewable energy input to the national grid from these two wind farms is significant, and an indication of a way of the future as Australia moves away from fossil fuels for domestic energy generation.
It becomes meaningful to know that the Hilltops region is contributing. Having said that - and as I am Hilltops Council representative on the consultative committees for these two wind farms - we continue to balance drought conditions, the delicate soils on these hillsides and unique flora and fauna.
To the area comes hundreds of jobs during the construction phase and focusing on employing locals.
We need to be assured the communities most affected by the visual and environmental impacts of the wind farms for the nation's benefit are compensated.