Valuable feedback on the proposed 400-megawatt Stubbo Solar Farm was provided on several key issues at the Community Information Session held late last month in Gulgong.
The project team has already received feedback from many people in the local community through a number of individual meetings or discussions.
The five-hour drop-in session was an opportunity for more members of the broader community to hear first-hand from the Stubbo Solar Farm project team, ask questions and provide their views.
About 40 people inspected the plans throughout the session, with the discussion focusing on the benefits of renewable energy, employment opportunities for local workers and businesses as well as potential visual impact from the solar panels, the proposed environmental exclusion zone and traffic flows and access routes.
The feedback will be a key input into the development of an Environmental Impact Statement for the project which is expected to be provided to the NSW Department of Planning Industry and Environment (DPIE) before the end of the year.
The project will be assessed as a State Significant Development under Part 4 of the NSW Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.
The NSW DPIE will then review and exhibit it publicly as part of the assessment process.
Members of the Stubbo Project Team will be in the area over the coming weeks and will be available to meet and discuss the project with people who were unable to attend the drop-in session.
You can get in touch by email at stubbo@upc-ac.com or call us on 1800 434 062. You can also provide feedback via our Facebook page @stubbosolarfarm.
Employment and Accommodation assessment to be carried out
A workforce availability assessment will now be prepared as a result of feedback received during the Stubbo Solar Farm Community Information Drop-in Session.
The assessment will involve several desktop studies as well as consultation with Mid-Western Regional Council, NSW TAFE and other training and recruitment specialists.
This will help determine the skills capabilities in the local and regional workforce and potential training requirements to help provide more employment opportunities for local workers and businesses.
An assessment of accommodation requirements and availability will also be conducted. The initial outcome of the plan will be included in the EIS and become a part of the workforce planning requirements for the project’s main construction partner.
Ongoing consultation with local and regional stakeholders will continue throughout 2021.
Traffic access options refined
Three traffic access options were discussed with the community and stakeholders as part of our consultation process.
Feedback overwhelming suggested that an option to access the project site from the western boundary via Black Lead Lane and Barneys Reef Road would impact dwellings and create additional traffic in and around the Gulgong Town Centre during construction.
As a result, this option will only be included in our EIS submission for occasional light vehicle traffic.