Join the fight for a better environmental and community outcome from the wind farm.

Submissions about the proposed Illawarra Offshore Wind Zone are open until October 16, 2023. We think this potential project is important to our energy future, to our community’s jobs and economy, and to fighting climate change. But we should demand the highest standards are applied to any development.

It’s still early in the process, and as a community we have lots of power to influence the outcome. Here’s what Electrify 2515 believes we should be asking for:

1) Demand a rigorous environmental impact process.

We must have a clear and thorough Environmental Impact Statement - paid for by the developer but independently conducted and assessed - that provides a clear review of the best available evidence before the project can be supported. We need to have best practice protection of our marine life and sea-birds imposed on the construction and operation of any offshore wind farm. Some important protections recommended by the Natural Resources Defence Council include:

• speed limits of 10 knots on all ships to avoid ship strikes, a well-known and serious risk to whales

• measures to minimise acoustic impacts during construction, and monitoring for any nearby whales before starting loud underwater activities

We should also demand ongoing monitoring of marine populations. So far, the evidence of environmental impacts for offshore wind suggests they’re safe overall for marine life, and might even have positive impacts for fish populations by creating artificial reefs. We must keep monitoring that evidence and the impacts of the project across its lifetime.

2) Demand the community shares in the benefits.

Wind farms are expensive to build and maintain, and investors will expect a return on their capital. Our community should expect a return on this precious public resource too.

What benefits would you like to see in the community? We’ve got some ideas:

• A contribution of 1c/kwh generated - which could be worth up to $150m per year - to local government for upgrading roads, playgrounds, and beach facilities / SLSCs

• Guarantees for local manufacturing and sourcing, and funding support for local industry apprenticeships and training

• Funding for walking and bicycle path connections and upgrades along the length of the coastline, to encourage tourism and local active transport options

• Funding for native rehabilitation programs to control invasive species like lantana along the coastline

3) Demand maximum impact from this wind farm on carbon reduction and climate change.

Offshore wind in the Illawarra must be part of a bigger picture - electrifying everything and moving on to a net zero economy and energy system.

If we’re going to establish powerful offshore wind energy sources, we should maximise their value to our economy and environment. We should make sure this wind farm is connected with strong transmission links into the grid, and forms part of a bigger plan to move to electrified homes, businesses and heavy industry.

Offshore wind is stronger overnight, when our energy system today uses the most coal-fired power, so it will help move to a renewables-powered grid faster.

Looking ahead to the day in the 2030s when coal is switched off, offshore wind can be charging up our EVs through the night, and during the day it can add abundant lower-cost energy for our homes, businesses and industries like hydrogen for green steelmaking, shipping or even export.

4) Take action - make your own submission and share

The more people in our community who will fight for a quality outcome from this proposal, the better it will end up. We encourage you to make a submission that supports the proposal and demands the best outcome for our environment, community and economy.