The topic of wind farms and transmission lines is polarising West Vic farming communities.
Some think the future of farming is at risk with projects being constructed on prime agricultural land, others believe that lines and turbines can operate alongside traditional farming operations while providing another revenue stream that isn't dependent on erratic seasons.
With their role in Victoria's energy system now firmly a political issue, it's difficult to get a clear view on whether farmers blanket support or oppose the co-existence of the technology alongside farming in the region.
So if you are a farmer who has just had a wind project approved for your property, what does that look like in the lead up to the November election?
Jason Head just learned the wind turbines he wants to host on his sheep and cropping farm in Normanville have been approved. At the same time, his shire’s Mayor is running for One Nation.
Image: The land approved for wind turbines, including Jason Head’s.
What happened: Head is preparing to host wind turbines on his land as part of the Normanville Energy Park development near Kerang.
The wind farm site sits within the newly declared North West Renewable Energy Zone, one of five onshore zones in Victoria.
The wind farm Head will host doesn’t rely on VNI West, but other planned renewable projects within the zone do.
What’s that?: VNI West is the proposed, and highly contested, 240-kilometre powerline project aimed at connecting Victoria to NSW’s electricity grid, transporting energy generated in renewable zones.
The Victorian Liberals, Nationals and One Nation have all vowed to scrap the VNI West project.
One Nation would prohibit wind and solar farms being built on agricultural land.
Power for 90,000: The project in Normanville was just approved by the state government and will include 17 turbines generating enough power for 90,000 homes.
As a local, Head thinks projects like this are the only way to stop small towns "dying a slow death."
Zooming out: Garner Smith, the mayor of Ganawarra Shire where Head’s farm sits, recently announced he will run for One Nation at the state election in November.
Head said he doesn’t believe One Nation would be capable of leading the state, and attributed the increase in support for the party to people feeling “disenchanted with the major parties,” adding that “one party will start a project, and the next will cancel it, and you get nothing in the end”.
He said “major infrastructure should be agreed by both major parties and get on with it”, and that something needs to be done to move away from coal.
“To do nothing is worse than something that might turn out not to be the best solution,” Head said. “But to do nothing is far worse.”
Getting involved: Head is a fourth-generation farmer with a property in Kerang.
Head said the farm’s been in the family “for quite some time” and he’s “trying to keep it that way”.
The way things work: Hosting wind turbines creates “guaranteed income” for farmers, Head said, adding that it ensures financial security “no matter how much rain” the seasons bring.
Construction of the turbines on Head’s property does not yet have a start date, but he said he’s not expecting the work to be disruptive.
“That’s one of the benefits. Renewable energy and agriculture can coexist,” he said.
“Small towns are dying a slow death. Shires need these developments. No one lives out there, and you need something to bring people back.”
He added that in some towns, more and more shopfronts, pubs and community spaces are closing.
The controversy: According to Head, there is some “fear-mongering” taking place in regional communities around projects like Normanville.
“Like any industry, there’s good and bad,” he told the Brolga. “A few farmers don’t want them, but there’s a lot that do.”
“People say it’s going to destroy the countryside, but if they look beyond their own nose, they’ll see it’s benefiting them.