What are the acronyms used below?

WSF- Wallaroo Solar Farm
DPHI- NSW’s Department of Planning, Housing & Infrastructure
IPC- NSW’s Independent Planning Commission
EIS- Environmental Impact Statement
VIA- Visual Impact Assessment

How much land does the project cover

The project has a disturbance footprint of 165ha (equivalent to approximately 190 football fields) across the two hosting farms, which includes 16 hectares of native vegetation plantings, Southwell Road upgrades, onsite access tracks, some ancillary infrastructure, managed asset protection zones and fields of PV arrays. 

The majority of the disturbance footprint will remain as pasture interspersed with rows of PV panels mounted on tilt axis at 5-10m gaps, depending on panel orientation, allowing for sheep grazing and vegetation management between and underneath panels. 

Are properties in NSW and the ACT treated the same during the assessment?

Social and environmental assessment does not distinguish between NSW or ACT residents. They are treated equally and consistently in consideration of all impacts. This is the same for all residents, regardless of potential neighbour agreements i.e. no neighbours have been removed from assessments or results excluded from reporting after signing neighbour agreements. 

Neighbour agreements are being honoured even though final assessment results have established low impacts.

What is the “5km rule” in NSW?

The NSW State Environmental Planning Policy (Transport and Infrastructure) 2021 (TISEPP) requires consent authorities to be satisfied of certain matters, such as land use conflict, future regional growth and scenic quality/landscape character, in respect of renewable energy proposals within 10km of the commercial centre, or within 5 kilometre of residential land, in identified regional cities such asAlbury, Armidale, Bathurst, Dubbo, Griffith, Orange, Tamworth or Wagga Wagga.

The Project is not located in the vicinity of a regional city listed under the TISEPP. 

Regardless, it is noted renewable developments in proximity to identified regional cities are not prohibited, but a higher level of assessment is required in the planning process to allow consent authorities to be satisfied if: 

• the development is located to avoid land use conflicts with existing and approved uses of land,
• it is likely to have a significant impact on, or conflict with, land that would be required to support the growth of an identified regional city, and
• it would significantly affect the scenic quality and landscape character of identified regional cities, including the approaches to it.

Consideration of the TISEPP has demonstrated the Project is located to avoid significant conflict with existing or approved residential or commercial uses of land surrounding the development.

Why was this site chosen for the Project?

After undertaking extensive investigations into suitable sites across Eastern Australia, WSF was chosen based on several criteria, including:

• optimal solar resources
• the availability of suitable land
• proximity to electrical loads
• minimal impacts to the project and surrounding lands
• access to grid connection with sufficient connection capacity
• community support for renewable energy projects
• existing land use quality and the capacity to rehabilitate post-decommissioning.

Is the Project permanent?

The project is expected to operate for approximately 30 years; at this point the Project will be decommissioned or further assessment will be completed and approvals sought to extend the project’s life. Any assessment would involve discussions with Landowners, the Community, Local & State Governments, and business and special interest groups. If an extension to the project’s life is sought, it would only occur after the above consultation and approvals from any required Government departments.

Under what guidelines/regulations will the project be assessed?

The WSF has State Significant Development status with Secretary’s Environmental Assessment Requirements (SEARs) received from the DPHI in October 2020 follow preliminary assessments and community consultation in mid 2020 and lodgement of a Scoping Report. 

During the EIS preparation, the NSW Government updated the Environmental Planning & Assessment Regulation 2021 and implemented new State Significant Development Guidelines as well as revised Large-Scale Solar Farm Guidelines. 

Who is the consent authority for this project?

Generally, the NSW DPHI are the consent authority for large-scale renewable energy projects in NSW. This project has now been referred to the NSW IPC for approval, and they will make the final decision on the development application.

How long will construction take?

Construction of the solar farm is expected to be completed in 18-24 months, with a peak construction period of 12 months

Which roads will be used to access the project?

Project vehicles will access the site from the Barton Highway, proceed down Wallaroo Road, Gooromon Ponds Road, and turn left into the project site at Southwell Road. 

All B-Double delivery vehicles transporting materials from Ports will access the project area from the south via the Federal Highway.

A small number, seven (7), of escorted Over Size/Over Mass vehicles will travel via Yass Valley Way, then onto the Barton Highway over the life of the Project. The Project is committed to supporting local suppliers and businesses and local suppliers of ancillary products or materials may also travel via Yass Valley Way to the Barton Highway.  

To minimise light vehicle traffic it is propose dconstruction workers will meet at marshalling points in surrounding areas to use shuttle buses to and from the site. Furthermore, in response to early concerns shared with the Project team there will be no heavy vehicle movements during the school bus pick-up and drop-off times in Wallaroo. 

Do solar farms make noise?

Building a solar farm can be noisy during specific periods of construction. This is mitigated by work only being completed during regular working hours. Work outside these hours will be assessed on a case-by-case basis and can only occur if acceptable noise levels are maintained.

During operation, the solar farm is expected to make some noise. A noise assessment has been completed as part of the EIS, which has found that no receivers will be subjected to noise above allowable limits.

What environmental and cultural heritage factors have been assessed as part of the project?

As part of the EIS for the project, NGH – a national environmental consultancy firm – compiled detailed assessments and reports on the below, while also addressing other potential concerns throughout the EIS:

• Biodiversity
• Visual Impact
• Glint & Glare
• Social Impact
• Aboriginal and cultural heritage
• Preliminary Hazard
• Hydrological & Hydraulic
• Noise & Vibration
• Traffic

How will hazards such as fires be managed during the project?

While there is no inherent fire risk associated with solar farms, the project will have improved all weather access and managed asset protection zones surrounding the panel areas and facilities. All onsite activities will be in accordance with Federal, State and Local Government laws and requirements.

The detailed proposed draft conditions of consent reflect detailed and specific WSF commitments in the EIS to safe operating conditions and for working with Fire and Rescue NSW and the local Fire Control Centre to prepare a Fire Safety Study to inform the development of a comprehensive Emergency Response Planto address the management of potential fires during construction, operations and decommissioning. 

Will drones be used on-site?

Occasionally drones will be used to complete infrared scanning of the project. This is part of the operation and maintenance procedures. The drones will only fly and take images within the project footprint.

How many jobs will be created, and will you source them locally?

WSF is expected to provide up to 200 jobs during peak construction periods, and 4-5 full-time jobs during its operational life. 

How will visual impacts be addressed?

A VIA was completed as part of the EIS, which has determined the project to have a low visual impact. This has been done using DPHI’s current large-scale solar guidelines. The VIA shows the potential visual impacts associated with the project, as well as a proposed landscaping treatments to break up views of the solar farm.

Project amendments have been made throughout the development process to further minimise potential visual impacts.

How will the local community benefit from this project?

WSF is committed to working with the local community and special interest groups to advance various environmental, social, and educational issues. This will be done through the community enhancement fund, where each year, funds will be made available to various groups to enhance the local area surrounding the project. 

Further to this, energy produced by the project will be available to residents within 7km at a discounted rate through Local Volts, an online peer to peer energy company. The energy is expected to be offered at a 30% discount on current pricing.

What changes have been made to the project during the development stages?

Throughout the development process the project has been responsive to community and stakeholder feedback regarding the potential impacts of the project. These concerns were addressed by WSF at multiple stages throughout the development process.

Project amendments that were undertaken include;

• reducing the operational footprint to minimise visual impacts and avoid ecologically sensitive areas.
• removal of panels in areas with potential cultural heritage impacts.
• operational controls to prevent glint and glare at all non-associated receivers.
• installing an on-site substation rather than building transmission lines to the existing Canberra substation, to avoid native grasslands and Golden Sun Moth habitat.
• avoidance of native vegetation and rocky habitats throughout the overall area of the two farms.
• avoiding vehicle movements on Southwell Road between Wallaroo Road and Brooklands Road to minimise cumulative impacts with planned gully remediation works.
• only having the oversize/over mass vehicles access the project through Yass Valley Way and Murrumbateman, with all other B double movements accessing the site through the federal highway.
• committing to avoiding truck movements during school bus drop off and pick up times in the wallaroo area.

 

What happens at the project’s end of life?

Decommissioning and rehabilitation of the site would be undertaken at the end of the Project’s useful life. The decommissioning process is a critical part of the development application process, and a decommissioning plan must be prepared at prescribed times  for endorsement.

Decommissioning would aim to return the land as close to its preconstruction condition as possible. The site would be left suitable for its existing agricultural or suitable alternative land use. Baseline soil mapping collected prior to construction would be used to verify the site has been returned to its existing (or better) land capability.

Will my land be devalued? 

There is currently no documented evidence of land devaluation related to solar farms in the area.

Where can I find more information?

You can find more information about the proposed WSF by visiting the DPHI website at https://www.planningportal.nsw.gov.au/major-projects/projects/wallaroo-solar-farm, or by scanning the QR code below.

Do you have any further questions?

For any further questions, please contact Ben Cranston at ben@newenergydevelopment.com to organise an online or in person meeting to discuss the project further.