Wind farm group laments decision

Wind farm developers trying to get consent for schemes are frustrated by a constant "raising of the bar"and the Environment Court decision against Project Hayes last week contains more worrying elements, a national wind energy group says.

New Zealand Wind Energy Association chief executive Fraser Clark was disappointed with the decision and said it would hinder the development of other renewable energy schemes.

"From our perspective, it was obviously a tough decision, but shows how hard it is [to] resolve the tension between what we want as a country - low-cost energy using natural elements that we hold dear, and how we reconcile that with the effect on the landscape."

Mr Clark said New Zealanders had signalled their support for renewable energy, yet the Project Hayes decision would make it even harder for other renewable projects to receive consent.

"We're already seen the bar gradually pushing up and up, in the amount of evidence needed to justify a project, and while that might be a good thing, there seems to be changing rules about the amount and information required."

The Environment Court found Project Hayes' positive factors of enabling economic and social welfare by providing a very large quantity of renewable energy were outweighed by the adverse consequences.

The decision said wind farms were in their "youth" in this country and there might still be many potential sites which were not located in areas of outstanding landscape.

It was preferable for those other sites to be "investigated first".

Mr Clark said elevated, exposed sites like the Lammermoor Ranges were the ideal location for wind farms.

Opposition to such developments usually boiled down to issues about the effects on the landscape, he said.

The association had supported Meridian when it first sought resource consent for the project.

The group had concerns about certain elements of the Environment Court decision, he said.

The decision suggested other sites for new generation should be investigated more fully.

"With other potential sites needing their own, equally comprehensive analysis, there is no way such an investigation could ever be achieved in a timely and effective manner," Mr Clark said.

"Meridian has already spent $8 million investigating their proposal."

The project would have made a significant contribution to security of electricity supply, he said.

The New Zealand Wind Energy Association is an industry group that acts as an advocate for wind energy developments.

It has 80 members including electricity companies, wind farm developers, lines companies, turbine manufacturers, consulting firms, researchers and law firms.

lynda.van.kempen@odt.co.nz