Public committee forms to advise CQ wind farm build

Community members, Livingstone Shire and Isaac Regional Council representatives and Clarke Creek Wind Farm team members participated in the project's first community consultative committee meeting last week.

The 800MW project promises up to 350 jobs on site during the three-year construction period and will have up to 25 permanent staff once operational but for now, it has its sights set on community engagement.

Representatives of the Clarke Creek Wind Farm project team. Goldwind Senior Development Manager Nam Quach, Goldwind Community Engagement Manager Sunny Rutherford, Lacour Energy Director James Townsend (left) and Goldwind Managing Director John Titchen at the Clarke Creek Wind Farm.

Goldwind community engagement manager Clare Powell said working with the community had been a key focus for the project since the first community events were held in 2017.

"The appointment of a Community Relations Officer and formation of the community consultative committee have been key recent activities," she said.

The committee aims to keep community informed, seek community views and respond to matters raised by nearby residents.

The company said the committee's advice would be factored into the project's delivery, including the development and delivery of the $200k community fund.

CAREERS: Clare Powell, community engagement manager at Goldwind Australia, spends about 1 hour 20 minutes on her work commute each way. Picture: Supplied

Noel Herley of MiCOMM is the independent chairman for the committee and said the inaugural meeting provided an opportunity for relevant stakeholder to remain up-to-date on the wind farm's progress while leaving the door open for community feedback and discussion.

"The committee agreed that it would be beneficial to meet quarterly, with the next meeting date scheduled for 2nd April 2020. Observers are welcome to be in touch if they would like to attend a future meeting," he said.

Located on the Powerlink 275 kV transmission network about 150km northwest of Rockhampton, the Clarke Creek Integrated Wind, Solar and Battery Project will cost $1.5 billion to build.

State and federal approvals to construct and operate the wind farm are in place and detailed pre-construction planning is underway.

Goldwind Australia, partnered with Lacour Energy, is aiming for a generation capacity of 800 MW. The wind farm component of the project is set to be the biggest in Australia. Once operational, Goldwind claims the wind farm will power about 590,000 Queensland homes and supply four per cent of Queensland's electricity.