Victoria's peak farming body says it hopes to translate growing anger about electricity transmission lines into better outcomes for the state's primary producers.
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A forum on transmission lines in St Arnaud attracted 160 people, and the Victorian Farmers Federation has now set up an Energy and Transmission Taskforce to address the issue.
Work has begun on both the Western Renewables Link, around Ballarat, and the VNI West project, which links Victoria and NSW, with infrastructure passing through the St Arnaud area.
Energy and Transmission Taskforce chair Gerald Leach said the group had been set up to ensure the people who were directly affected by the projects had a voice.
"There certainly is a great deal of interest and what people have heard so far is really very alarming," Mr Leach said.
'We acknowledge these transmission lines are a necessity, but there are different ways of transmitting power and all of those have to be looked at."
He said there was anger in the community about the roll-out of the power lines.
"That anger is very understandable - hopefully, by developing the taskforce, we will be able to harness that and get better outcomes for farmers."
He said the VFF would like to see both sides gain from the projects.
"We are not trying to stop transmission lines, we are trying to have sensible negotiations, so they can be located in the correct places and in the correct manner," he said.
"The overwhelming view is that they should go underground - it's not as if that is new technology, the first underground transmission line in the world was here in Australia.
"That's Murraylink, which takes power from Berri, SA to Red Cliffs, Victoria."
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When asked about farmers' concerns cropper Gerald Feeny, Gooroc, said:
"Which do you pick? There are that many," he said.
"First of all, there's the height limits of 4.6 metres under the lines but our headers are already more than 4m high.
"Say you are folding an airseeder up, when you fold the wings up, you are over 4.5m, so how do you traverse your own paddocks?"
He said the transmission lines might also hamper the use of drones, which could be used to spot weeds or determine fertiliser placement.
"You can't have drones or aircraft around most lines, so that also affects aerial spraying," he said.
There was also a major issue and uncertainty around fires, with concerns the CFA would have to call transmission line managers to get permission to enter easements.
Properties could be devalued, due to the powerlines, and they would not result improved power supply, he said.
"We are carrying the burden of this wonderful green energy, but we are not getting access to it - we have 240 volt single phase power and they are not going to upgrade us."
He said it was farmers who continually carried the burden of "these grand schemes" of politicians, such as the loss of the wheat trade due to the Iraq War, Chinese import bans and high fertiliser prices, due to the Ukraine war.
"Once again, we have got green energy and the people who are going to lose the most money and carry the most cost are landholders and farmers."
Barry Batters, Burrumbite, St Arnaud said farmers still didn't know where the VNI line was going.
"They [AEMO] may know, but they are not telling us," he said.
Mr Batters took part in a separate webinar, one of three run so far by AEMO, to discuss farmers' concerns
"I think it is very poor form, they told us they had been negotiating, consulting with people everywhere - but they haven't told us anything."
Mr Batters also questioned the compensation to be paid for the 70-metre lines, on 100m easements.
Farmers will be entitled to compensation for the value of the 70-metre to 100-metre easements under the 500kV transmission lines and pylon footprints, plus $200,000 for every kilometre line paid out as annual instalments of $8000 over 25 years.
"All these people, who live in other areas where the power lines are not going to be going aren't concerned about us - people make decisions about our lives but don't come from our area.
"We are wearing the pain for people in other areas - the compensation is pathetic, they said they are going to spend $3.2 billion on this project and they are going to pay the growers $48m over 25 years.
"It's peanuts, peanuts."
Australian Energy Market Operator Victorian Planning general manager Nicola Falcon told farmers at the St Arnaud meeting an exact route had not been determined and no maps had yet been drawn up.
AEMO has been contacted for further comment.
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Andrew Miller
I'm a general reporter with Stock & Land, with a special interest in irrigation issues. I completed my cadetship, with the Age, in 1980. Over my career, I've worked for ABC radio news (Mt Isa, Qld) and at provincial and suburban newspapers.
I'm a general reporter with Stock & Land, with a special interest in irrigation issues. I completed my cadetship, with the Age, in 1980. Over my career, I've worked for ABC radio news (Mt Isa, Qld) and at provincial and suburban newspapers.
