“A new regulatory framework is required to align the approach to managing wind farm noise with the [amended] Act,” the government said on its Engage Victoria website this week. “Clear and consistent wind farm noise regulation is needed to provide certainty to industry and confidence for communities.”

Noise Australia

Developers of a planned sprawling Gippsland windfarm with turbines among the tallest in the country have sought an independent panel to assess and approve the project. ...Objectors claim the 250m turbines pose a fire risk and may hamper the efforts of water bombing and retardantspraying aircraft in the blazeprone part of Victoria.

General Australia

The proponent behind the mammoth Golden Plains Wind Farm near Rokewood has denied reports less than the planned 228 turbines will be built. In a statement, a WestWind spokesperson said it was “inaccurate” to suggest the scope of the project had changed.

General Australia

Australia’s biggest wind farm is now all but mechanically complete. The last of the 149 turbines at the 530MW Stockyard Hill facility in central Victoria has been installed, three substations are complete and energised, and yet – more than one year after the original timetable – the facility is not producing power.

General Australia

Dr Micic said the latest study aimed to comprehensively review published evidence regarding the impact of wind turbine noise on the most widely accepted objective and subjective measures of sleep time and quality. ..."Nevertheless, the available self-report data appeared to support that insomnia severity, sleep quality and daytime sleepiness can be impacted by wind turbine noise exposure in comparison to quiet background noise."

Impact on People Noise Australia

Federal energy and emissions reduction minister Angus Taylor says the latest emissions productions published by the Morrison government show that Australia is on track to meet its 2030 emissions target without the use of controversial surplus emissions credits, but it also predicts a collapse in large-scale solar and wind investment.

Energy Policy Australia

Last month, Dundonnell was also hit by a fallen blade at one of its Vestas turbines, which brought production across the wind farm to a halt for a few days as the cause was investigated. Campbell says it is clear that the blade fell because bolts holding it to the hub became loose, but the question of why those bolts became loose is still under investigation.

Safety Structural Failure Australia

The company behind a planned wind farm on Brown Mountain has suspended the development claiming continuing global uncertainty due to the coronavirus. The news came as somewhat of a relief for residents in the area, who have been campaigning against the development for more than three years.

General Australia

Tilt Renewables’ massive Dundonnell wind farm in Victoria is gradually powering back up one week after the project was shut down after a 73 metre, 70 tonne blade fell off one of the project’s 80 newly installed Vestas turbines.

Safety Structural Failure Australia

The blade fell around 8.30pm and the company has since removed all turbines from operation while an investigation of the damage occurs. "A root cause analysis will be completed in conjunction with the wind turbine manufacturer, Vestas, which will inform the assurance process on the other turbines prior to these being returned to service," Mr Campbell said.

Safety Structural Failure Australia

Fines totalling $26,640 have been issued to a NSW windfarm for failing to meet environmental approval conditions.

General Australia

Dr Smith’s conclusion was: It is clear from the investigation that noise from the wind farm is audible within residences although there are noise monitoring reports stating that there is compliance by the wind farm with permit conditions and the New Zealand Standard 1998, and with a noise mitigation strategy in place at the wind farm. The noise was clearly audible in Mr Zakula’s dwelling at night time twice and in the Jelbart residence at night time twice and this is held to be unreasonable in both cases. 

Legal Australia

The Robbins Island wind farm is the epitome of bad planning. Environmentally, it is placed in the middle of an important bird habitat. It proposes a private bridge and causeway across a sandy channel, more than 1400m long, and destroys one of the great vistas of the North-West coast. It also relies on a 170km long high voltage transmission line, across forest and farmland. It is directed to a group of dams that should be dedicated to hydro irrigation.

General Australia

Land owner says the noise from the turbines near his property has caused sleep deprivation for residents.

Legal Australia

Police are investigating an incident at the proposed Delburn wind farm in Victoria’s Latrobe Valley, after a meteorological mast installed at the site was vandalised, causing it to collapse.

General Australia

The Asian Renewable Energy Hub is planning to erect wind turbines and solar arrays across 6,500 square kilometres of land. But, like with other renewable energy mega projects, this land is subject to Aboriginal rights and interests — known as the Indigenous Estate. While renewable energy projects are essential for transitioning Australia to a zero-carbon economy, they come with a caveat: most traditional owners in Australia have little legal say over them.

Impact on People Australia

But the 20-tonne, 68-metre-long turbine blades were too big to move around many of the corners on rural roads. The team had no choice but to tackle the busy Great Western Highway over the Blue Mountains and then down the steep Victoria Pass, Mr Andrews said.

General Australia

Energy output has flatlined at Queensland’s biggest wind farm with no electricity sent to the grid for more than a week straight. The Mount Emerald Wind Farm has not produced a kilowatt of power since Monday last week – and it was a similar story earlier in the month.

General Australia

Mrs Olsen expressed her concerns about the Forest Wind Farm when a committee report on the project was tabled in parliament. In the report, she said “the sheer size and scale of Forest Wind’s proposal should ring alarm bells”.

Impact on Wildlife Impact on Landscape Australia

Tilt Renewables warns of hit to earnings after massive Dundonnell wind farm faces commissioning delays, company cites “insufficient clarity” from AEMO.

General Australia