The Western Australia Fishing Industry Council (WAFIC) has just welcomed its new CEO – and Melissa Haslam has immediately been in the thick of it by calling on the Federal Government to provide details of the newly-declared Bunbury offshore wind farm area, recently announced by the Minister for Climate Change and Energy.
Melissa Haslam commented that while the revised area had been reduced, there will still be a level of impact on commercial fisheries which must be recognised.
‘It is encouraging to see that the revised area has reduced its overlap with commercial fisheries, however it is another incremental hit on the fishing sector that will reduce the capacity to put local seafood on plates,’ she said.
‘While the WA fishing industry recognises the need to co-exist with other marine based industries it is essential that the planning process is open and transparent and actively seeks to reduce impacts on commercial fishing.’
WAFIC wants to see government work with industry to establish a policy framework for co-existence that will mitigate adverse impacts on the commercial fishing industry. Ongoing concerns remain around the construction and installation phase of the wind farms, including the impacts on the marine environment from noise and vibration to install the turbines and cables, as well as the electromagnetic effects and potential exclusion zones post-construction.
WAFIC will be working with the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water to ensure fishing interests are recognised and represented, including the establishment of a fair and reasonable compensation framework due to any economic loss from the offshore wind development.
WAFIC will also be working with affected fishers, as well as the State Government to better understand how offshore wind will affect the State’s preference for land-based wind farms. ‘WAFIC’s preference is for renewable energy projects to be located away from fishing grounds and for every effort to be made to avoid interactions,’ Melissa Haslam said.
‘Where this is not possible, we need the opportunity to have input into the windfarm designs to minimise potential impacts.
