Wind-farm code plan rejected Business Breaking News Breaking News 24/7 - NEWS.com.au (23-06-2006)


STATE and territory governments have rejected a proposal for a national code for wind farms claiming it would just add more red tape.A meeting of environment ministers (EPHC) in Sydney today voted against the federal government's call for a National Code for Wind Energy Installations.
"A national wind farm code would just be more red tape to hold up wind farms, to hold up the sort of clean, green energy that we need in Australia," Victorian Environment Minister John Thwaites said after the conference.
"What we don't need is a whole lot of bureaucratic red tape imposed by the Commonwealth which will strangle our wind farms and lead to a reduction in that clean, green energy."
He said the states were "absolutely comfortable" with communities voicing their opposition to wind farms.
"We encourage communities to express their support or opposition to the particular proposal," Mr Thwaites said.

He said there was an "independent system to consider and assess proposals" within the state system.
"And that's the appropriate way to go," Mr Thwaites said.