Toowoomba council has approved a proposal to build accommodation hosting up to 800 workers to deliver a nearby solar farm, but questions remain about how the builder will offset its impact on the community.
Eight of the nine councillors at a council special meeting on Wednesday, May 28, voted in favour of approving a development application to build a 100-hectare precinct to support the Bulli Creek solar farm.
The project proponent, Genex, will look to start construction in 2025, and host workers by 2026, at the site about two kilometres north east of Millmerran, adjoining the Millmerran showgrounds and aerodrome.
According to documents submitted by Genex, it could host an average of about 380 people over the life of the project, to be transported by shuttle bus to the Bulli Creek project 45 kilometres southwest of Millmerran.
It would generate 775 megawatts of energy at the 5000-hectare site by the mid-2030s, putting it in the top-five largest solar farms in Australia by output. The state government was placing additional scrutiny on renewable energy projects at the time of writing, cancelling one wind farm and introducing legislation to increase the benefits that renewable energy projects provided to communities in May.
In the week prior to the meeting, residents raised concerns on social media about the project’s impact on local roads, traffic, noise, and the capacity of local businesses to cater for increased demand.
The debate at the meeting between a Genex representative, a community representative, and councillors centred on the proposed benefits the project would deliver to the people of Millmerran to outweigh any negative impacts.
Genex committed to providing more than $800,000 in upgrades to Millmerran State School, the golf club and the town’s green spaces to offset impacts, as well as funding a locum doctor and donating firefighting equipment.
Genex project director Tallaesen Fleming said it would only provide the community benefits if the project could get funding, and this depended on whether the council approved its development application.
“There have been multiple forums where we have engaged with the community; we have had information sessions, we have gone to meetings with Millmerran Commerce and Progress Inc, and attended the Millmerran show,” Mr Fleming said. “That is how we came up with the proposed community benefits.”
Property Projects Australia director James Juhasz spoke at the council meeting on behalf of community members who were concerned about the accommodation’s impacts.
He said there was nothing substantial that bound Genex to deliver on its commitments to provide community benefits. “Communities [around Queensland] are not getting the clarity they need from proponents in relation to promises and mitigation measures,” Mr Juhasz said. “We want mitigation measures to be clearer to offset an increase in the population of Millmerran of 50 per cent over 10 years.”
Gary Gardner was the only Toowoomba councillor who did not vote in favour of approving the proposal, abstaining instead. Toowoomba mayor Geoff McDonald said council was striving for the best result for its community, including lasting benefits.
“If I could offer some advice to the applicant, continue working closely with the community,” Cr McDonald said. “What you have put forward is very positive, but hearing from the submitter, there is still work to be done; I ask you to do that in good faith.”