Farmers fear for land that produces some of best potato crops in the world
AprApril 2021 at 8:46pm
Katherine Myers says the proposed line could reduce their irrigated potato crops by 20 per cent.
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For generations, farmers in Victoria s west have grown some of Australia s most productive crops. But they are concerned this is about to change.
Key points:
The Western Victorian Transmission Network Project proposes high voltage transmission lines to transport renewable energy from Bulgana to Melbourne
Farmers are concerned transmission line easements through their land could restrict the use of vital farming machinery
McCain Foods estimates the project could affect 29 growers and says the productive land should be protected
26 February 2021
The final route of a massive electricity network upgrade that promises to unlock huge amounts of new large-scale wind and solar in western Victoria has been narrowed down to just a few alternative corridors, ahead of an updated proposal expected to be made mid-year.
ASX-listed AusNet Services this week unveiled the latest design for the Western Victoria Transmission Network Project, which proposes a new transmission line stretching nearly 200km from Bulgana, in Victoria’s west, to the north-western Melbourne suburb of Sydenham.
AusNet said the changes to the Western Victorian Transmission Network Project – pictured in the map below – brought it a step closer to being realised, as the first major grid upgrade for the state in 30 years and a “critical” piece of its renewable energy puzzle.