In 2012, King Islanders were trusted to determine the fate of a proposed wind farm. Today, the results of a community vote are in.

Despite an anti-wind energy scare campaign backed by wealthy NIMBYs and big PR, the community has voted for a wind farm feasibility study. The result shows that King Islanders won’t be fooled by anti-wind energy spin.

TasWind, the firm proposing a 600MW wind farm for the island, has won community backing for a feasibility study. It gave the feasibility study the green light at a press conference in Hobart. The two-year feasibility study will examine the economic, technical and environmental aspects of the wind farm proposal. The community will now be able to get all the information to needed to make an informed choice about the wind farm proposal.

King Islanders, who have lived with wind turbines for a decade and a half without complaint, have dismissed absurd claims of ‘wind farm noise disease’. Now it’s time for the anti-wind energy campaign accept the community’s endorsement of a feasibility study and end its divisive campaign.

Yes 2 Renewables have visited King Island several times in 2013 to observe the community consultation process. It’s apparent to us that the wind farm proposal has the potential to transform the King Island economy for the better. It can diversify the economy as it struggles in the wake of the closure of an abattoir, shrinking population and increased shipping costs.

The King Island community’s decision will put the island on the radar of new economy firms such as Google, Facebook and Apple, who are seeking renewable energy of the scale proposed by TasWind to power data centres. The island has the opportunity to become a truly clean, high-tech economy, mixing it’s renowned dairy and meat industry of today with clean renewable and web-based economy of the 21st Century.