Offshore wind farm: Business owner fumes over controversial $10billion project on NSW south coast

A commercial fisherman fears his livelihood is under threat after last-minute changes to a new offshore wind farm were given the green light.

The final changes to the 100-hectare stretch of sea where the $10 billion project will be built were completed by the federal government on Saturday.

About 1.8 million homes are expected to be powered by the floating wind turbines located 20km offshore of NSW’s Illawarra coast, south of Sydney.

The project was initially planned to be just 10km offshore, where local fisherman Mark Horne caught lobsters for a living, but was changed at the last minute.

Fearing his fishing spot would disappear, Mr Horne invested $500,000 in a new boat to expand into new fishing areas, which is now obsolete due to the changes.

The fisherman told Ben Fordham from 2GB Monday that the government’s decision to go ahead with the project was “devastating,” adding that he “cannot achieve victory.”

“On Saturday morning, that half a million dollar investment will have to be put on the back burner in one fell swoop,” Mr Horne said angrily.

He took aim at federal Energy Minister Chris Bowen for pushing through the proposed wind farm despite concerns from locals and commercial fishermen.

“(Mr Bowen) didn’t want a bar of it… his decision had already been made,” Mr Horne said.

“Any politician or interested person can come to Kiama, I will personally take them out and show them pristine waters.”

He added that the impact on commercial fishermen was not taken into account despite doing their best to make the sector sustainable.

The fisherman also raised concerns about the potential ecological impact of the wind farm, which could be buffeted by huge swells.

“It’s just an environmental disaster waiting to happen … if one of them catches fire, collapses or breaks away,” he said.

“There has to be a better way than sticking (wind turbines) out in one of the most pristine oceans in the world.”

Mr Horne said he bought a new boat in the belief that his lobster fishing spot would be within the boundaries of the offshore wind farm (stock photo), but that the government would push it further from shore.

The $10 billion project will be built 20 kilometers off the Illawarra coast (highlighted) and is expected to power approximately 1.8 million homes upon completion.

Federal Labor MP for Gilmore Fiona Phillips called the wind farm “great news for local jobs and businesses” in her electorate.

“This is about getting more renewable energy into the grid, which will provide energy security and put downward pressure on energy prices for everyone in Gilmore,” she said in a statement Monday.

‘That is good news for households, companies and local employment.’

The local member and Mr Bowen estimated that the project will create an estimated 1,740 new jobs during construction and add 870 ongoing jobs upon completion.

Ms Phillips’ comments sparked outrage among locals.

‘Classic case of destroying the environment to save the environment. There are certainly better options than this unaffordable madness,” one person wrote.

Another added: ‘I recently heard that it costs 2.5 times as much per wind turbine to build on water than on land! And we’re all paying for this.’

Another challenged the government to make plans for a wind farm ‘at Bondi Beach and see how green and environmentally friendly it is’.

“I’m so sick of the Illawarra being used as crash test dummies for the rest of Sydney,” they wrote.

The project has infuriated locals, who challenged the government to instead install a wind farm at more popular coastlines, such as Sydney’s eastern beaches (stock image)

Mr Bowen said the Government had taken “community concerns” into account when determining the final zone and had reduced the size of the area by a third compared to the original proposal.

The declared zone, the fourth in Australia, ‘excludes important environmental areas’ including the Southern Right Whale migration and breeding area, and an area designed to protect the little penguin population.

‘This is important for sustainable energy, important for employment. But this is also a balanced statement,” Bowen said.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted the Ministry of Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Water for comment.