Homeowner spends $10,000 on solar panels in the Oaks, NSW – only to learn it may be worthless
Homeowner spends $10,000 on solar panels – only to discover it can be a worthless investment
- Homeowner complains about new construction blocking her $10,000 solar panels
- Sharon Robertson slammed NSW Council for giving permission
- She said it would block the sun on her panels all winter
A homeowner is devastated after spending $10,000 on solar panels and learning that a two-story house will be built next door blocking sunlight to her home.
Sharon Robertson, who lives in The Oaks in southwest Sydney, said the neighboring project has been approved by the local council.
She claims her pleas have fallen on deaf ears and she is at her wits end.
“I think it’s ridiculous,” said Mrs. Robertson 7NEWS.
“Even the mayor and four other councilors have gone in to bat for me and said, you know, ‘Who cares?’.”
Sharon Robertson (pictured), who lives in The Oaks, south-west of Sydney, said the two-storey development next door has been approved by the local council – who have basically told her ‘bad luck’
Ms Robertson said she feels the council has told her ‘oh well, bad luck’ by adding that the development (pictured, a map of the property next to her house) would not allow the sun to shine on its panels during the crucial winter months. to block
Ms Robertson said the development would block the sun on her panels during the crucial winter months.
Wollondilly Shire Council CEO Ben Taylor said the ongoing construction complies with ‘the range of development controls applicable to the site and the environmental impacts are not unreasonable’.
Councilor Suzy Brandstater said she was gutted by the decision, saying it was “unfair” for someone to build a house that blocks the panels’ energy source.
Wollondilly MP Judy Hannan said the state’s planning rules need to change and Planning NSW needs to have a vision of how to run them in the future.
It comes after one of Australia’s most high-profile radio presenters reignited the debate over solar panels last year, claiming that the ‘clean, green source of energy’ has environmental concerns.
Sydney Radio 2GB presenter Ben Fordham raised questions about the ‘fragile’ and ‘flawed’ business case for panels after being inundated with complaints from listeners who were dubious at the time about attempting to make the switch.
Fordham said authorities cannot hide that many question marks remain over the panels, even though half a million NSW households alone have installed them, including himself.
It costs Australians an average of $10,000 for the panels on top to $16,000 for the battery to get the most out of the system, the host claimed.
It costs Australians an average of $10,000 for the panels on top to $16,000 for the battery to get the most out of the system, 2GB radio presenter Ben Fordham claimed last year
“People have installed solar panels in the hope of saving money in the long run,” he said.
‘But more and more experts point out that the ‘savings day’ is being postponed further and further.’
“We’ve had listeners point out to us that they aren’t really saving money after making the switch.
“It sounds like people are starting to regret the buyer.”
One woman told Fordham that her household now pays $80 more per quarter than it did two years ago before they switched to solar because they are paying back the cost of the panels.
The NSW Department of Planning and Environment was contacted for comment by Daily Mail Australia.