Last week, The Weekly Times reported that numerous wind farm developments across Victoria may face termination due to the highly inflexible nature of the Napthine government’s anti-wind farm laws and permit rules (our coverage is here).
Some 20 companies who were successfully granted permits prior to the introduction of the anti-wind farm laws have been denied the ability to make simple upgrades to their farm turbines. Minor modifications such as the use of more efficient generators and longer, more aerodynamic blades are not permitted.
The anti-wind farm laws have killed off the pipeline for new proposals and uncertainty surrounding the Renewable Energy Target has stalled investment in shovel-ready wind farm. As Sandra Hawkins argued in a letter to the editor published by The Courier (Ballarat), it is another factor that prevents regional communities from reaping the benefits of renewable energy:
WIND farms are great for drought-proofing farms, contributing rates and community funding to local communities, providing employment and adding visual amenity to landscapes “Wind turbines in turmoil” (WT, July 9).
Combined with their ability to push the wholesale price of power down and have peak activity in times of peak demand, they tick so many boxes.
The Bailleau Government’s planning restrictions are dumb policy, as is any suggestion of winding back the renewable energy target.
Victoria deserves a more progressive government.
Sandra Hawkins, Ballarat
Sandra’s views are widely held in Victoria. Recent polling by the Climate Institute found 71 per cent backed state-based support for renewable energy. Solar rooftops and wind farms are overwhelmingly the preferred energy sources.
As Sandra alludes to in her letter, voters will be looking at where the parties stand on renewable energy when the go to the polls.
Will the Denis Napthine government adopt pro-renewable energy policies and seize on the goodwill in the community? Or will they leave that fertile ground to Daniel Andrews’ Labor opposition who have already shown some leadership on renewables? We’ll soon know…
TAKE ACTION:
- Support cleantech jobs for Victoria? Sign our petition calling on Premier Napthine to scrap the anti-wind farm laws and both the Premier and Opposition Leader Daniel Andrews to support renewable energy.
- Volunteer with Yes 2 Renewables and help us build a pro-renewables movement. Only when Victorians are active will the politicians get serious about renewable energy. Contact us here to express interest or email leigh.ewbank [at] foe.org.au for more information.
- Connect with us on Facebook and Twitter.
yes2renewables.org 
Will Leigh or Andy report on – Fires are major cause of wind farm failure, according to new research. One of the leading Universities in the world Imperial College London reports that research suggests that incidents of wind turbines catching fire are a big problem that is not currently being fully reported. What else are wind farm developers lying about? See the link for a summary of the research – http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/newsandeventspggrp/imperialcollege/newssummary/news_17-7-2014-8-56-10
What do you think, Blair?
What do I think about turbine fires? Yes they do happen on rare occasions. Your point? I’d rather have one turbine knocked out by a fire than a whole coal-fired power station. As usual you focus on the nitpicking while ignoring the elephant in the room. Still waiting for your alternatives to renewables…
And something else for you to think about:
You’re right one turbine knocked is no disaster (unless it causes a major fire (see next comment) as a matter of fact all turbines knocked out or not working due to the intermittency of the wind doesn’t matter because we know they are reliably backed up by coal or gas.
It really is telling that you remain silent on the obvious dangers from nuclear power and coal-fired electricity but you continue your pathetic criticisms of renewables. Your hypocrisy and double standards are typical of the shortsighted, selfish attitudes of denialists and the uninformed.
Blair a fire in a turbine in the proposed site of Macedon’s Community Wind Farm has the potential for an Ash Wednesday scenario. The site is in the middle of a volatile pine plantation on the south west side of the mount. Are you prepared to guarantee the safety of the lives and the potential property damage? The point I am making is that wind farm carpet baggers have lied and continue to lie about the risks and fools like you will not the accept the evidence when it presented to them. There are no double standards in my comments. I was a volunteer fire fighter on Black Saturday and my own home and family was at risk while I was out fighting fires and I know that if a turbine caught fire in any proposed wind farm development it cannot be extinguished due to its height and helicopters cannot fly in and around turbines when the air is full of smoke – so don’t call me a hypocrite you arrogant know all.
Gerard, a meteorite falling on your head has the potential to kill you – see what I did there?
Your feigned concern about safety rings a little hollow considering you have said nothing about the people over in the Latrobe Valley who were affected by a coal mine fire for over a month. You are a prize hypocrite and your lack of empathy for people who have been seriously affected by a genuinely dangerous situation demonstrates the point.
Do yourself a favour and appraise yourself of what fire authorities in South Australia and Victoria say about windfarms. You are out of date, ill informed and just plain wrong.
Your arrogance is only exceeded by your ignorance:
Click to access CFA_Emergency-Management-Guidelines-for-Wind-farms.pdf
“While there cannot be any guarantee that an installation involved in electricity generation can never malfunction and cause a fire, the potential for fire of wind turbines is inherently low.”
“Fire suppression aircraft operate under “Visual Flight Rules”. As such, fire suppression aircraft only operate in areas where there is no smoke and during daylight hours. The standard distance of 300 metres between wind turbines would allow aircraft to operate around a wind farm given the appropriate weather and terrain conditions.”
Your fabricated disaster scenario is even less likely to occur than you choosing to be informed.
Unlike you, the relevant authorities are well informed about fire mitigation measures and the relative dangers of fire from all sorts of structures. Something you never bothered considering apparently? Had you done so you would know that the fire danger from turbines is low, something the CFA recognises even if you choose to ignore the facts.
Some more information that puts the fire risks into perspective:
http://barnardonwind.com/2013/03/01/wind-farms-causing-fires-all-smoke-no-flame/
Your manufactured conspiracy theories are as unrealistic as you are.
Read the research Blair. wind farm developers have lied about fire incidents by a factor of 10. The CFA and the CFS have based their findings on a lie and they need to update their policy based on this new evidence. Typical of you to stick up for carpetbaggers and not the truth. It is hardly feigned concern when I live in one of the most bush fire prone areas on earth and I volunteer my time to put out fires which are caused naturally or otherwise. You really have lost the plot trying to defend your worshipped turbines. The CFS captain I spoke to in South Australia where the Roaring Forties turbine caught fire (and was only noticed by a passing ship who reported it) said all they could do was stand around and watch the turbine until it extinguished itself. It was a still night and the wind was blowing towards the sea so not much chance of it burning out of control unlike a 40 degree day at the end of summer with winds gusting up to 100kmh in Macedon Ranges. Are you sure you haven’t been hit on the head by a meteorite or something else that has rendered you senseless?
I do read the research which is why I know you are parroting a beat up. If you torture statistics long enough you can make them say anything. The key sentence in the article you linked to clearly states, “By comparison, with other energy industries, fire accidents are much less frequent in wind turbines than other sectors such as oil and gas, which globally has thousands of fire accidents per year.”
So once again you are nitpicking about a known issue with minor consequences while conveniently ignoring serious environmental damage from your beloved fossil fuels.
It’s obvious you are not well versed in reading or understanding research. There are a lot of ifs, buts and maybes in the article and no clear indication that objective comparisons have been made comparing newer turbines with older ones or with different industries.
Are you seriously trying to tell me that some turbine fires are more of a threat than exploding oil rigs, coalmine fires and nuclear catastrophes? You really should stop it Gerard or you’ll go blind.
As for “the truth”, it’s clear you have lost all contact with it as your increasing paranoia and whining demonstrates. It’s evident you are not a reliable witness so I very much doubt the alleged claims made by any firefighter anywhere in the country. Your bias renders you an unreliable witness.
But go right ahead making mountains out of a mole hill if it helps you sleep nights. Just don’t be surprised that people no longer take you seriously. You only have yourself to blame.
As for extreme weather conditions, turbines would most likely be parked under those situations so your distortions are baseless.
I reckon this is a corker of an article. “By comparison, with other energy industries, fire accidents are much less frequent in wind turbines than other sectors such as oil and gas, which globally has thousands of fire accidents per year.”
So what exactly is your point?
Can you tell me how many bushfires have been started by wind turbines in Australia? Perhaps I should tell you because I’m sure you’ll just hit me with some incoherent rant…..it’s zero!
You are really fired up tonight Blair, “You really should stop it Gerard or you’ll go blind.” It is not me who has hole in their pocket. Your blind faith will not allow you to understand the issues. Wind farm developers lie – you perpetuate their lies, are you on a retainer? SP Ausnet and other parties recently settled a class action for 500 million dollars for an electrical fire that killed 178 people and destroyed many homes. Lets hope the wind industry has deep pockets when one of their turbines causes bush fire. Blair I reckon yours has probably dropped off.
He gets paid to comment im sure Gerard the same as Chapman does . You can show the guy the facts and he cant bring himself to accept them. Put him in the middle of the bush and a turbine burning and see how good he is .As long as its in someone elses backyard he is happy.
You do moronic really well Chris. Oh how I wish I was paid to promote renewables, it would make correcting the garbage you write slightly more bearable. You, Gerry and TCW should start your own whingeing club specialising in selfishness, denial and stupidity. All three of you are admirably qualified.
Way to go Gerry, what you failed to understand was that SP Ausnet was fined for not maintaining infrastructure, especially transmission lines. But again, you never let the facts get in the way of your prejudices, you bend over backwards to ignore your double standards to find any excuse to criticise renewables.
Here is some more information for you to ignore, as I’m sure you will. I know that you will never bother reading the information at the links I post but others might find them useful. You have demonstrated time and again you prefer to demonstrate your ignorance rather than be informed.
http://www.businessspectator.com.au/article/2014/7/21/policy-politics/how-often-do-wind-turbines-catch-fire-and-does-it-matter
What planet are you on Blair. It was a settlement for compensation not a fine. You should up/reduce the meds!
Anyone who uses Barnard as a reference, has lost it before they even start, there are so many incorrect statements in that article, it is obvious that Barnard and Blair for that matter, have never been near a running grass, stubble and scrub fire on hot and windy 45 degree day, or they would not make the ridiculous statements that they have.
Barnard quotes the South Australian CFS’s, comments on fires around wind farms. We approached the CFS many times for their policy regarding fires and wind farms and they had none, they just buried their heads in the sand and waffled on about turbines and power lines, being the same when it comes to using water bombers.
Our aerial contractors have clearly stated that they have a safe flying setback of 500 metres flying parallel to turbines and three kilometres flying towards them. For anyone to say that planes can fly between turbines during a raging fire, shows their complete naivety, because the turbines would be totally obscured from vision, by the smoke and dust.
I would be very concerned about putting turbines in the Macedon ranges, we are worried enough about the Ceres wind farm here, where we have open country. The several fires we have had here, were only controlled by the use of water bombers, allowing the ground crews to get in and stop them.
To say that wind farms with their access roads and hard stand areas help control fires, is the most ridiculous thing I have heard of, I have never seen a road, even major highways, stop a fire on a bad fire weather day and our fires would be nothing like the fires Gerard would have experienced.
CW.
Unlike you TCW, Mike is informed. You make a lot of incorrect assumptions and ridiculous calls considering you don’t know anything about me, or Mike.
The CFS do have a policy regarding windfarms but you are either lying, too lazy or too dull to obtain the information.
The rest of your claims about serial contract is is pure fiction because they don’t fly when there is no visibility. Of course anything you don’t agree with is ridiculous as far as you’re concerned because you prefer ignorance and denial rather than spending a little time being honest and doing some research. You personify the old saying that ignorance is bliss.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to go and pick up my pay cheque from big wind.
Blair I thought you weren’t talking to me anymore after you had a little sulk a few months ago .Keep up your cult status Blair you will get a follower one day.
As usual, you haven’t disappointed Blair, another predictable response, no substance just a lot of inane rhetoric. I will form my own opinions on Barnard, after all, he is all over the Internet.
Contrary to what you may think, we have learnt quite a lot about you, just by the way you react here and other places on the Internet.
Now perhaps you would be kind enough to post a link to the CFS wind farm policy, because from all of our discussions with them, they didn’t have one, if they have one now, I haven’t seen it and I can’t find it, is that too much to ask, without receiving a mouthful of abuse?
Let’s see if you can control yourself long enough to actually contribute something to these discussions.
You have shot yourself in the foot by calling me ignorant, when I relate real life situations, you tell me I should do some research, I don’t have to research wild fires, I was there and I am telling you, hardstands, roads and major highways will not stop them.
CW.
CW I can tell you on Black Saturday the fire in my area was spotting 5-10 km in front of the fire. A fire in a turbine with the hub 100m above the ground could easily spot that sort of distance in front of the fire. There were reports on B.S. of spotting up to 35km in advance of the front.
Helio Chris, Gerard and TCW. The information at this link explains why renewables are overtaking your precious fossil fuels…
Try not to cry in your beer.
You’re losing it Blair. You have already posted this. Is this to cover up the fact that you cannot find the CFS policy. You avoid the fact that turbines burn and are proposed for some the most vulnerable bushfire zones in the world.
Relax Gerry, given you are a bit slow to catch on and your penchant for denial, I thought it best to post the video again to help you understand. You are not very social are you?
Where have I stated that turbines do not burn? You’re lying again.
You go right on believing that I don’t have the CFS policy if it helps you sleep nights. It’s not my fault if you are to silly to find it.
You are really starting to sound desperate.
Change your dose Blair you’re tap dancing now! You can’t find it either. Why not just admit it. If you had it you’d be shouting from the rooftops.
I don’t doubt that for a minute, Gerard, some of the footage I saw mentioned how far the fires were spotting.
You get a 45 degree day with a howling north wind, there is no telling how far a burning turbine would spot a fire. In some cases the rotors are still turning and the blades are burning as well.
With a turbine fire at Starfish Hill, south of Adelaide, the CFS were told to stay a kilometre away from the burning turbine.
https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2010/11/20/cant-fight-the-fire/
CW.
“The CFS do have a policy regarding windfarms but you are either lying, too lazy or too dull to obtain the information.”
I am still waiting Blair, for you to post a link to the official CFS Wind Farm policy, after the above torrent of abuse, I think that is the least you can do. I have searched for their policy and am unable to find it.
TCW.
The name of Blair’s video says it all, ‘The storage necessity myth: how to choreograph high-renewables electricity systems’. It is just a choreographed video of energy hypotheticals in 2050. If it works and is sustainable, I do not have a problem with that. I certainly won’t be crying in my beer over it.
My main argument is the inappropriate placement of wind farms.
Blair Quote: “You go right on believing that I don’t have the CFS policy if it helps you sleep nights. It’s not my fault if you are to silly to find it.”
If Blair wants to play silly little games, he can, I don’t have time for that and I certainly do not need any help sleeping at nights.
CW.
Blair is always very quick to reply with a rant and a personal attack. Except this time. Has he publicly been caught out telling a lie.
If he had the CFS policy he would have posted it .Doesn’t surprise me the guy struggles with facts he would rather launch a personal attack to change subject than face the truth.
As far as I know, there is no policy, we tried on numerous occasions to get the CFS to produce an official policy on using planes around wind farms, because people here need to know and all they did was waffle on about turbines being no different to power lines, which is utter bullshit.
Then they said it is up to the pilots and to cap it off, the ‘head honcho’ said there may not be any planes available, in other words, there is no policy.
With every major fire we have had here over the last few years, the planes were instrumental in slowing those fires down, so that ground crews could get in there and stop them.
Blair tries to promote himself as being the ‘full bottle’ on wind farms, he hasn’t displayed that here and chooses to ignore the obvious.
TCW.
Blair is a wind bag, who huffs and puffs and he will bully anybody who disagrees with his world views. He often diverts attention away from the issues of the thread by going off on tangents and mention irrelevancies a well known but childish tactic of those that can debate appoint due to their inadequate knowledge.
You are right TCW in all the fires I have been involved in, aircraft were instrumental in slowing the fire except for Black Saturday where there was no aircraft support in the fire I was involved in due to weather or them being used elsewhere. On that occasion nothing could stop the fire and all we could do was be lucky and protect some homes. Unfortunately we could not do much on this sad and difficult time. This is a day I will never forget.
A few typos there ‘going off on tangents and mention irrelevancies, a well known but childish tactic of those that cannot debate a point due to their inadequate knowledge.’
You jokers are barking up the wrong turbine! You should be lobbying the tobacco industry as a rogue cigarette butt is far more likely to start a bushfire than a wind turbine!
And when it comes to fighting fires have you considered that the access roads on wind farms actually provide better access to fire trucks in the event of a fire in the vicinity of a wind farm?
This bushfire myth is up there with your alleged 40 wind farm refugee families and 200 plus illnesses attributable to wind farms.
Is your surname Chapman well done Simons Dad. What better access to the footprint only after that what? Same with all you guys none of you give a dam what happens to anyone else as long as you can live in some dream land..
Pat, don’t waste your time trying to reason with these clowns. They get spooked at shadows, ignore facts, distort reality and think the world revolves around them, hence their preciousness. They get a little embarrassed and defensive when you call them out for their foolishness.
Your references to the tobacco lobby and access roads will be ignored because it highlights the double standards these wackos employ. And they wonder why we don’t take them seriously?
CFS policy anyone??????????.BD has a very long nose………
If you stopped whingeing and did a little bit of work, you too could get the policy guidelines. It doesn’t take much effort but apparently any effort is too much for you. Wallow in your self-imposed denial.
Blair = Pat?
Chris = Gerry = TCW = mass denial of reality
What you still haven’t found it Blair. When you tell porkies you have create diversions. Again a well known tactic.
So what do you think the ABC and other news outlets meant when they quoted the CFS e.g. “Aircraft are only used on a relative minority of fires throughout the fire season, it’s just really another piece of infrastructure in the environment that we just need to be managing on a risk basis when we’re fighting fires,” he said.?
Are you claiming the ABC and other news outlets simply made up these comments? You keep believing what you’d like Gerry, You really believe the CFS have no policy guidelines regarding turbines? Your ability to deny reality never ceases to amaze me. It must be an amazing world you live in where all facts are ignored when they conflict with your conspiracy theories.
Quoting the CFS is a very different thing than a policy. I will quote you –
“The CFS do have a policy regarding windfarms but you are either lying, too lazy or too dull to obtain the information.”
“You go right on believing that I don’t have the CFS policy if it helps you sleep nights.”
“If you stopped whingeing and did a little bit of work, you too could get the policy guidelines. It doesn’t take much effort but apparently any effort is too much for you.”
You don’t have it Blair you made it up it is you that have issue with reality. All you do is have to produce a link after all you said you had it.
Stop whining and produce it! Or everybody will know you are a liar and a hollow braggart.
Keep digging Gerry, I’m not going to do your work for you. It’s amazing you suddenly want evidence when you have studiously avoided it when it contradicts your misconceptions. I couldn’t care less whether you believe me or not. You are really obsessed with yourself.
You can’t find it either – you just made the whole thing up – to pretend you have greater knowledge – you’re ego is so big you can’t back down. What else have you made up?
You believe what you want to believe, I could belt you over the head with evidence but you’d still deny it existed. I’ve noticed anti-wind cranks are adept at denial. I’m not pretending I have greater knowledge than you Gerard, I know I have greater knowledge than you because I do my best to be informed, unlike yourself who wallows in self-pity under the illusion that everybody should jump up and down to your whims. Try not to work yourself into a lather.
Liar and fraud!
Liar is an understatement .
Good morning to you to Chris. Throw all the mud you like, being called names by the likes of you and Gerry is a laugh given your propensity to fabricate non-existent anti-wind horror stories. Try not to choke on your hypocrisy.
You can hide your embarrassment by hurling insults but the fact remains, I have the evidence, you don’t – and I don’t really give a rats whether you believe me or not.
Problem is Blair believes his own b–shit that’s why he has a CFS policy that he doesn’t have. JUST produce the policy you say you have and prove me wrong .Its pretty simple even for you .
Blair, reality has caught up with you, hundreds of thousands of people around the world are contradicting what you are telling us and you can’t even provide the information that you claim you have, you are all bluff.
You, Barnard and Clarke, have been caught out time and again with your bullshit, the tide has turned and you lot are being sucked out with it.
CW.
Hundreds of thousands? Pull the other one TCW, it plays Jingle Bells. Your denial is really tragic. Wind and solar are growing around the world, the New South Wales government recently announced it wants that state to become the California of Australia by pushing solar and wind. Read it all here:
http://www.smh.com.au/environment/renewable-energy-nsw-to-be-australias-answer-to-california-20140722-zvl60.html
“The Baird government says it plans to adorn as many of its buildings with solar panels as possible and ease the way for more wind farms. ”
“In a separate nod to the renewable energy sector, Mr Stokes said he has recommended that the Environment Protection Authority treat noise from wind farms as it would noise from other mining and resources projects.”
Demonstrating once and for all that the noise claims you and your denialist buddies make our empty rhetoric and that sound from wind farms is no different to any other activity.
Blair, let’s get a few things straight, I do not have a problem with renewable energy, particularly solar. but it has to be sustainable,at the moment we can not afford it, by that I am referring particularly to wind, under the current system, it is costing too much for too little.
I do have a problem with the inappropriate placement of wind farms, you do not go into rural communities and tell them they have to have 197 turbines, without any consultation.
As for your comments on NSW being the California of Australia, it is pretty clear you do not listen to what the people of California are saying.
As for noise issues with wind turbines, we have no other mining and resources projects here, nor do we want wind turbines making noise.
Bury your head in the sand if you want, the noise issues with wind turbines are there and they are real, ignorance of the fact reflects more on you than it does me.
CW.
Blair I understand your bluff and bluster now and your preparedness to be called out as a liar – you’re taking a hit for team wind. You have also successfully diverted the argument through most of the thread that wind farm developers and operators have lied about the risk of fire in turbines by tenfold. This has implications for fire authorities in rural areas. I know you have raised the point that oil rig fires or gas fires are of greater risk. This is true but we do not have onshore oil rigs and gas extraction is mostly offshore although this may change in the future with fracking. It is revealing that most of your so-called research come via Google as the only thing you can support your CFS lie with is the first hit you get in the search from ABC. I hope the apostles of wind appreciate your efforts.
Believe what you like Gerry, you’re still wrong. The link I posted to TCW proves the point that you and your mates are losing the battle because the evidence is against you. The only lying being done is you lying to yourself by inventing all sorts of horrors that completely contradict reality.
If you bothered to do a little homework and spoke with fire authorities you would discover they are well aware of the comparative risks posed by wind farms in comparison to other activities. Lightning and power lines pose far greater risks by orders of magnitude but you choose to ignore that – as usual.
If you think most of my research comes from Google, you just keep believing that. You really have no idea at all where I get my information.
I hope you enjoy the SMH article 🙂
All of your ‘research’ is only you parroting what Peter Hannam, Giles Parkinson, Leigh Ewbank, Clarke, Barnard and all of the other self professed ‘green energy’ so called experts, trying to blind us with bullshit and scare the Government into spending billions of dollars, with their ‘doomsday climate change’ scare tactics.
That is where all of your information comes from Blair, that is why it is so biased, you do not seem to be able to think for your self.
Your fire authorities might be well aware of the risks posed by wind farms, but ours certainly did not seem to have much idea, when we were trying to get them to formulate a policy.
We are not saying that wind farms are any worse than anything else, as far as fires are concerned, they are an added risk factor, the bigger problem being that in the case of the Ceres project, it locks up an area covering 18,000 hectares where planes can not be used, as they have been in the past with several major fires we have had here, some of them in the wind farm area.
Pat raised the question of roads in wind farms earlier on. In the range country,wind farm roads are a real asset, but in our situation where it is flat and accessible, roads are really not much advantage. While in mild conditions they may hold a fire, there is not very great risk anyway and the fires are easily controlled, but in bad fire weather conditions, I have never seen a road, even major highways stop a fire, only the planes.
CW.
That’s what I love about you TCW, you epitomise the conspiracy theorist and believe you know more than people who have spent a fair chunk of their career in a particular industry.
I know your fire authorities have far more idea about the relative problems posed by wind energy than you ever will. You simply don’t want to know.
Of course you are saying that wind farms are worse than other things regarding fire, sound and any other ridiculous excuse you want to dredge up. Simon’s list of “illnesses” all raised by people like yourself proves that you are inventive even if you don’t have a very strong grasp on reality.
You forget that all your ridiculous commentary posted on the net is available for everyone to see. I’m happy for any objective, rational person to compare your claims against mine.
It’s a lie to say that planes cannot be used because they are used in this area around the Toora wind farm without any problems at all. You are just seeking another excuse to oppose a clean future for purely selfish reasons.
Any fire in extreme weather conditions is dangerous. That’s hardly news. But the number of fires in coal mines, caused by vehicles, fallen power lines, arsonists and stupidity greatly exceed any of the risks posed by wind turbines. Until you can acknowledge that fact, why should anybody take you seriously?
TCW, with respect, you haven’t got a clue who I have been speaking with. You and your buddies are the ones who specialise in BS. Your ridiculous claims are remarkable because you don’t live anywhere near a wind farm while you ignore those who do – yet you still think you’re an expert. What a joke. But you give the game away with your insistence that renewables are not increasing in use around the globe and climate change is nonsense. Those beliefs might comfort you but they do nothing for your credibility.
I think you’ll find the CFS has at least an equal awareness of fire risk as Victoria’s CFA, both see them as minimal.
It’s a blatant lie to say the Ceres project will “lock up” 18,000 ha and prevent agricultural aircraft from being used. Agricultural aircraft have no problems flying around the Toora wind farm and I suspect, other windfarms in the state.
Even planes will not stop a severe fire when the weather conditions are extreme. We found that out here in Victoria on Black Saturday.
The road access is useful for fire brigades and the host farmer. Fact.
Blair, you know nothing about the fire authorities here, that is just more bluff, we have been dealing with them, you haven’t.
I never said wind farms were worse regarding fire and what that has to do with Simon’s list of ‘ilnesses’, I have no idea, I have never mentioned illnesses caused by wind farms, only noise problems.
Have you been drinking again?
I am quite happy for everyone here to read my commentary, I think my comments have been quite rational, compared to most of yours.
What happens at Toora, is not my concern, I am telling the contractor here has put a safe flying parameter of 500 metres flying parallel to turbines and 3 kilometres flying towards them. Abuse me as much as you like, I do not fly the planes.
It seems I have to repeat things, you seem to have trouble grasping them the first time around. I said, we are not saying wind farms are any worse than anything else when it comes to starting fires, I said, they are an added risk and the fact that planes will be unable to be used to fight fires within the wind farm area, increases that risk, not only for any fire that may be started by a turbine, but any other fire, which is quite common here with harvesting machinery.
CW
The folly and con of renewables
Coal and gas electricity companies are being paid up to 400 times the wholesale price of power, in return for helping to stabilize the German electricity grid.
According to Bloomberg, “Germany’s push toward renewable energy is causing so many drops and surges from wind and solar power that the government is paying more utilities than ever to help stabilize the country’s electricity grid.”
“At the beginning, this market counted for only a small portion of our earnings,” said Hartmuth Fenn, the head of intraday, market access and dispatch at Vattenfall AB, Sweden’s biggest utility. “Today, we earn 10 percent of our plant profits in the balancing market”.
Full story http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-07-24/german-utilities-bail-out-electric-grid-at-wind-s-mercy.html
It is possible fossil fuel generators are spinning their CO2 belching turbines up to full power, and are simply discarding vast amounts of excess energy, until solar or wind output drops – so they can be ready to dump extra capacity onto the grid at a moment’s notice.
At 400 times the wholesale rate, they could afford to burn away gigawatts of power as waste heat, and still make a handsome profit from the “balancing” fee for whatever energy they actually supply to the grid.
Is that what we have store for us in Australia?
So Blair ‘I think you’ll find the CFS has at least an equal awareness of fire risk as Victoria’s CFA, both see them as minimal.’ is that as close to admission that you fibbed about having the CFS policy.