An appeals hearing into the rejection of the proposed $150m Bookaar solar farm is seen as a test case for the industry.
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Nine days of hearings have been set aside by the Victorian Civil Appeals Tribunal to hear the case after Corangmaite Shire Council refused to issue a permit to the 550-hectare solar farm at its September meeting.
A compulsory conference has been scheduled for 3 May, but this is not open to the public.
The first of the hearings will be held in Warrnambool on June 17 to 19, and in Melbourne on June 24-27 and July 1-2.
Corangamite mayor Neil Trotter said the shire was aware that it would be a long hearing which was a concern because it made it very expensive for the council.
"Going to VCAT is not a cheap option," Cr Trotter said. He said the hearing was regarded as a test case.
He said unlike windfarms, there was not a lot of planning policy or guidelines at state level on solar farms that the council had been able to follow.
"It's unfortunate because it adds cost to the process," he said.
Going to VCAT is not a cheap option.
- Mayor Neil Trotter
Another solar farm proposal in northern Victoria is also headed to VCAT with Cr Trotter saying that proposal had similar issues that Corangamite faced relating to land use and the value of land.
There were more than 80 objections to the proposal, many concerned about the loss of farming land.
Infinergy Pacific's proposed Bookaar solar involved 700,000 photovoltaic panels, inverters, a substation, battery storage and site compound across a 554-hectare site.
Objector Andrew Duynhoven said objectors had struggled to get legal representation for the hearing because many they had contacted either represented renewable companies or didn't want to be associated with fighting against them.
He said a group of objectors had been given a quote of $400,000 to represent them but promised just a 20 per cent success rate.
Mr Duynhoven said that because it was such a high-profile case, there was an unwillingness from many legal firms to be involved. "We're fighting the big end of town now," he said. "No one's willing to stand up with us."
Mr Duynhoven said objectors were also struggling to get support from state or federal MPs.
He said he was bringing in his own agricultural expert for the hearing, and Infinergy was expected to bring in seven to nine expert witnesses.
He said the company was "throwing a lot of money" at the hearing and he described it as a "fight against a million dollars".
We're fighting the big end of town now.
- Objector Andrew Duynhoven
However, he said the objectors would be heard and, at the end of the day, if they were not successful in stopping the project they hope to get enough conditions on the development to protect the community.
"This is a complex case. It's not just about putting a solar farm there," he said.
He said it was about the change of land use and cost to community in terms of visual impact and fire risks.
"We've won in some regards in getting the hearing in Warrnambool," Mr Duynhoven said.
He said of the 150 jobs the company was touting, only a handful would be permanent.
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