Powerlink EIS dismisses concerns

The final Powerlink environmental impact statement for the Woolooga to Eerwah Vale powerline has dismissed local environmental concerns for threatened species like the koala.

The government company will now seek ministerial approval for the $100 million project, which would result in 275,000-volt lines being strung through the Noosa hinterland and easement resumptions in the first half of next year.

Powerlines Action Group Eumundi members, who include Ridgewood and Eerwah Vale residents, have vowed to challenge Powerlink every step of the way.

“We were expecting this to happen on December 18, so they’ve caught us a little bit on the hop,” PAGE spokesman Jack Connolly said on Wednesday.

“This is just round two. Our first step will be to examine the EIS in detail – we asked a lot of questions and every one of them has to be responded to.

“We will be looking for anything they have not responded to or glossed over and then will take that to the coordinator-general and then on to the minister (for infrastructure Stirling Hinchliffe) if we have to.”

Mr Connolly was livid that Powerlink had chosen to release the EIS at one of the busiest times of the year when people were planning Christmas celebrations. “It’s a deliberate act on their behalf.”

Powerlink Queensland chief operating officer Simon Bartlett said Powerlink would now seek ministerial designation of the corridor for community infrastructure and resume the necessary easements during the first half of 2010.

Mr Bartlett said there did not appear to be any social, environmental, or cultural heritage issues that would prevent the project from being recommended.

He thanked the community for its involvement in the draft EIS prepared earlier this year.

“The community feedback received has been valuable in assisting the project team to identify some minor refinements to the alignment in the Eerwah Vale area,” Mr Bartlett said.

He said the final alignment would have only minimal impact on mapped koala habitat and would not affect any areas of high value koala habitat.

Mr Bartlett said Powerlink would use modern best practice easement and vegetation management techniques for the project, including maintaining as much vegetation on the easement as possible in sensitive locations. He said the project did not require any further assessment or approval by the federal environment department following the federal government declaration earlier this year that the project will not be a controlled action under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.

Electronic copies of the final EIS and more information about the project can be obtained from www.powerlink. com.au or by telephoning freecall 1800 635 369.

Hard copies of the EIS can also be viewed at Gympie libraries and Sunshine Coast libraries at Noosa, Nambour and Maroochydore.

Specialist environmental consultant Parsons Brinkerhoff (PB) completed the final EIS report following consideration of all submissions received on the draft EIS.