General News
12 February, 2026
Plea for pause on south west renewable projects
MEMBER for South West Coast Roma Britnell has called for the Victorian Government to place a pause on all new wind projects until deeper community consultation is undertaken, in addition to ensuring decommissioning practices protect the future of agricultural land.
Ms Britnell raised the adjournment matter in Parliament last Tuesday with the Minister for Energy and Resources.
She called for onshore and offshore wind approvals in the South West Coast to be “immediately paused” while community consultation is adequately conducted, and to provide a transparent and enforceable plan for turbine decommissioning and full land remediation before any further projects are given the green light.
“This matter goes to the heart of a community that contributes enormously to this state yet continues to be taken for granted by this Allan Labor Government,” Ms Britnell said.
“Our community recognise the importance of transitioning to a low-emissions future.
“However, for more than a decade our region has borne a disproportionate share of the renewable energy burden.
“Productive agricultural land has been increasingly blanketed by wind farms, often approved with inadequate consideration of the cumulative impacts on farming operations, local communities and the environment.
“Now the government is proposing to push even further, with offshore wind projects imposed on a community that has made its objections abundantly clear.”
Ms Britnell said her position was not a direct opposition to renewable energy, but a concern the region’s renewable energy projects were not environmentally responsible or well-planned.
“What we do not support is reckless decision-making that places irreplaceable environmental assets at risk,” she said.
“The proposed offshore wind zone sits within a recognised whale migratory pathway and a nursery for the southern right whale, a species that was driven to the brink of extinction and now, remarkably, is returning in growing numbers.
“There is nowhere else in the world where an offshore wind farm operates in active whale calving zones.
“The risks remain unknown, and when the risks are unknown, rushing ahead is the greatest danger of all.”
Ms Britnell said on-shore projects had equally been problematic, saying the Victorian Government was rushing ahead with projectsbecause it had “failed Victorians” on energy affordability and reliability.
“Instead of a credible, balanced energy plan, we see panic-driven targets and communities pushed aside,” she said.
“Consultation has become a box-ticking exercise, not genuine engagement.
“The proposed Garvoc wind farm is a perfect example.
“During a so-called 28-day consultation period over December and January, a farmer submitted questions only to be told the department was closed for the holiday period and the email would not be addressed.
“This is no voice, no choice. It is not consultation, it is contempt, and it gets worse.”
Ms Britnell also reiterated her concerns surrounding the decommissioning process.
“Projects continue to be approved without any meaningful end-of-life planning,” she said.
“At Codrington, some of the first wind farms in the region are now being decommissioned.
“Because of government failure to plan, around 500 tonnes of concrete per turbine will be left buried in productive agricultural land.
“New turbines are far larger. We are now talking about hundreds of thousands of tonnes of concrete permanently entombed in prime soil – which is environmentally irresponsible by any measure.
“Our community deserves respect, transparency and honesty – not to be railroaded.”