COMMUNITY DISSENT FOR

The Mary Valley has once again been asked to bear the brunt of infrastructure to service growing needs elsewhere in Queensland. Thirteen years after fending off Peter Beattie’s Traveston Dam plan, the Valley is now in Powerlink’s sights for high voltage powerlines to connect a proposed hydro-electricity plant at Borumba dam with the Tarong or Halys substations, near the Bunya mountains, and the Woolooga substation, north of Gympie.

Powerlink has cast three proposed corridors between the dam and Woolooga. An eastern corridor steers through Kandanga, Dagun, Amamoor, to Pie Creek and Fisherman’s Pocket on its way to Widgee Creek and Woolooga substations. A central corridor cuts across western parts of Amamoor, through the Mary’s Creek state forest and then through one of two routes through Widgee to the Woolooga and Widgee Creek substations.

A western route heads through Gallangowan state forest past Black Snake towards the future Cinnibar and Oakview solar farms towards Woolooga. Two southwest routes run from Borumba through to Halys. One runs cuts across Jimna and the Sunday Creek state forest towards Linville and then skirts north of Benarkin and Blackbutt to Tarong and Halys substations.

The other southwest route runs via Mt Stanley to Tarong and Halys but could hook up to Borumba through either Jimna state forest, or through the Yabba Creek and Diaper state forests.

The MVV has been told the powerlines will traverse properties used for ecotourism, camping, an eco resort, and farming, including organic and permaculture properties. The MVV understands a number of residents are so worried about the potential effect on their incomes and the value and liveability of their homes, often their major asset that they are experiencing physical symptoms such as stomach upsets and difficulties sleeping.

Four motions were moved at the meeting, including that the Powerlink corridor should be predominantly on state owned land and no individual should be disadvantaged by the corridor.

The meeting also moved that Powerlink’s inclusion of the eastern corridor as an option had brought, “undue harm to the community” and was “an attempt to split the community and build support for other corridors” when a decision was made, and that it was an “unwarranted attack on the Mary Valley community” that they would stand united against.

A Mary Valley action group has been formed to coordinate the community’s fight against the lines.

Widgee resident Shea Rule, who has taken a lead role in the Say No to the Lines campaign, said Widgee had already copped a solar farm, roadworks associated with the farm, heavy vehicles associated with the farm’s construction and its repair after a storm.

She said that the feeling across all of the potential corridors was that a state-owned project should be on state-owned land.

A number of residents felt it would be best if the Borumba hydroelectricity plant did not go ahead which would negate the need for any of the corridors, she said.

Powerlink maintains that no final decisions have been made on the location of the transmission lines or towers.

~ Dawn Johanson, pictured with neighbour Oscar above.

A spokesperson said letters had been sent to more than 3200 property owners within the draft corridors inviting them to provide feedback.

Following the release of the draft corridor options in November, Powerlink organised 20 drop-in sessions between December and February which had been attended by almost 2000 people and feedback had been received from 1200 so far.

Dawn Johanson is one of the Dagun residents who would be affected by the eastern corridor. Dawn already has a powerline easement on her property but as she understands, the high new proposed voltage line would be right next to or over the top of her hundred-year-old home. Dawn, who has been on the property for 35 years, fears the line would make her home unliveable.

“It’s upsetting. It’s upsetting for all the residents who are affected,” she said.

Dagun resident Reg Lawler, a former teacher and pineapple farmer, has got involved in the battle although he is not directly affected. Reg said the eastern corridor would affect a number of people – the most out of the three options north to Wooloogaalthough Powerlink had claimed it was trying to cause the least possible disruption. He said local residents did not feel anyone should be burdened by the powerlines and that they should traverse state-owned land. Reg convened a meeting of Dagun and Amamoor residents on 5 February where they decided to insist that Powerlink not adversely affect anyone.

“It is a State project to benefit all in Queensland and it is unfair that any person is selected to carry the costs of the project by having Powerlink forcibly intrude on their land and offering minimal compensation for the loss incurred by the individual.

“Ideally, Powerlink should be on land owned by the State and where this is not physically possible, any affected landowner must be properly compensated."

“Insights from landholders, community and other stakeholders will help to identify a single recommended corridor which will be released for feedback in March/April 2023,” the spokesperson said.

According to the spokesperson, Powerlink would analyse