DURING the first week of State Parliament in 2025, Rikkie-Lee Tyrrell, Member for Northern Victoria, pledged to protect the state’s agricultural land from renewable energy projects. She addressed three proposed projects affecting local communities.
Firstly, Tyrrell urged Planning Minister Sonya Kilkenny to reject Mint Renewables’ Dederang BESS facility, which the community opposes due to poor consultation and concerns about its location on prime farming land.
“The Dederang region is home to some of the best agricultural land in Victoria and it needs to be protected from unwanted renewable energy projects,” she said.
Tyrrell also objected to the Cooba Solar facility planned for the Heathcote wine region in Colbinabbin. Tyrrell noted concerns from constituents about misleading data used in the application process by Venn Energy Group.
“These are very serious concerns held by opponents of this new solar farm and the Minister needs to pause and consider the views of the Colbinabbin community before making her decision,” she added.
Lastly, Tyrrell condemned the proposed Meadow Creek Solar facility in the King Valley, highlighting its negative impact on local farmers and land quality. After two years of fighting the proposal, Tyrrell mentioned over 500 objections from the community.
“I have been informed that the solar farm is impacting the ability of adjoining landowners to obtain adequate insurance for their properties,” she said.
“All three of these projects are strongly opposed by the respective communities and it is time the Minister and the Allan Labor Government finally listened to regional Victorians instead of pushing ahead with destructive renewable energy agenda.”
