Last week, The Canberra Times reported that anti-wind farm campaigner Tony Hodgson has threatened legal action against neighbours who host turbines. The following is a letter to the editor published by the paper:

Anti-wind farm campaigner Tony Hodgson’s threats to sue neighbours who host turbines (‘Threat of legal action against wind farm hosts,’ October 29, p6) are not new.

Earlier this year it was reported that Maurice Newman, business advisor to Prime Minister Tony Abbott and board member of Tiger Airlines, issued a similar threat to Crookwell sheep farmer Charlie Prell. In both cases, the legals threats were made in relation to alleged health impacts of wind farms.

There are now 19 reviews by credible health bodies that show wind energy is clean and safe. It’s time for anti-wind farm groups to accept this and stop bullying potential turbine hosts–people who are seeking a drought-proof income stream for their farm and act on climate change.

It’s OK for people to have disagreements about the aesthetics of wind farms in the bush. Most Australians can accept that. What’s unacceptable is bullying behaviour in the form of legal threats. It’s divisive and prevents communities from assessing the merits of wind farms.