Farmers face fines for blocking access during transmission line projects under plan

Australia Broadcast Center

2 days ago

Farmers are vowing to stop transmission line builders from using their land, despite the threat of large fines and clashes with police.
The Victorian government plans to change legislation around land access for transmission project construction, which would introduce new penalties and give authorities the ability to use force if needed.
The proposed amendments to the National Electricity Bill are expected to be debated in state parliament this week.
The law change would facilitate the design and construction of new transmission projects like VNI West and the Western Renewables Link (WRL), which are key parts of the government's renewable energy transition.
The projects have faced huge opposition from landowners and sparked numerous protests.
Claire Grant farms with her partner Tim at Glenloth East, between Kerang and St Arnaud.
VNI West, a high-voltage transmission line planned to run from New South Wales to Bulgana, would cut directly through their farm.
Compensation is on offer for landowners who have towers and infrastructure built on their property, but Ms Grant said no amount of money would buy their support.
"[The government] just doesn't understand that money can't win us over," Ms Grant said.
Under the new legislation, Ms Grant could be fined $12,000 for refusing access to builders.
Authorised workers would also be able to use reasonable force to get onto her property, with the backing of police.
But Ms Grant said none of that mattered to her.
"We don't want them on our land. We will have our tractors [at the front gate]. We will have our dozer there. We will have whatever we need to block them from entering our land," she said.
Beck Legal property and development director Josh Ennis said there would be very few circumstances where an access order would not be granted by a court, under the legislation change.
"You would be looking at safety concerns or biosecurity concerns," Mr Ennis said.
Mr Ennis advises farmers about the legal implications of the VNI West project, and said authorities already had access rights for surveys, but there were no enforcement provisions in the existing laws.
"The bill before parliament takes it a step further in that it introduces the concept of authorised officers," he said.
"Those officers have the ability to issue on-the-spot fines if people obstruct them, and they also have the power to get an order from a Magistrates' Court.
"Once they have that, they've got the right to use reasonable force and attend with Victoria Police."
Ms Grant said she was opposed to VNI West for a long list of reasons, including a potential loss of land value, restricted use of machinery, fire risk and aerial spraying limitations.
The couple recently built a new house that would look out on the transmission line.
"We're going to have a lovely view of VNI West out our window," Ms Grant said.
"We probably wouldn't have built the house if we knew this would happen.
The Victorian opposition has repeatedly said it would seek to repeal the legislation if it wins the next election in 2026.
The coalition's energy spokesperson David Davis described it as "sharp, harsh legislation" and "significant government overreach".
"The government should not have brought in this bill that has a very authoritarian tone to it and a dramatic escalation in penalties and control," he said.
"The government already has very significant powers to build infrastructure."
VicGrid chief executive Alistair Parker told the Victorian Country Hour that voluntary access agreements were his top priority.
"Our position is that we should be seeking voluntary access from people, we should be negotiating with them, we should be understanding their biosecurity concerns, we should be honouring those," he said.
"Our really strong message to transmission companies is 'get voluntary agreements'.
VicGrid is responsible for planning and developing the new infrastructure and Mr Parker said he believed voluntary access would be secured with all but "one or two people" in the path of VNI West.
VNI West developer Transmission Company Victoria (TCV) declined to be interviewed, but in a statement, a spokesperson said it was "committed to voluntary agreements" and "working with landholders".
Energy Minister Lily D'Ambrosio was also contacted for comment but was unavailable for an interview.