Last year’s review that spotlighted high community distrust of the renewable energy industry is gathering dust, and this is creating a real risk for the industry, says Australian Energy Infrastructure Commissioner (AEIC) Tony Mahar.
Although the nine recommendations of the Community Engagement Review were quickly adopted by federal and state governments, there’s been less enthusiasm for implementing them.
“There’s not enough attention, resources or commitment, and a collective effort devoted to that report. We can’t let this report sit on the shelf and gather dust,” Mahar told the Wind Industry Forum in Melbourne on Tuesday.
“That report isn’t moving fast enough, though, it isn’t being prioritised enough. We risk leaving communities behind and letting frustrations fester, not just with individual projects but with the renewable industry as a whole.”
Communities feel left behind
Mahar’s grim warning to the industry comes after spending the first six months in his new role on a listening tour of Australia.
Meetings in farm sheds and community rooms revealed deep-seated and widespread concerns that engagement is just a box ticking exercise, with many communities still feeling like the energy transition is “being done to them.”
Despite early adoption of recommendations such as an independent developer rating scheme, which the federal government launched as a pilot in March, Maher hasn’t seen much progress since.
“I can see that there are some constructive and some positive things happening in the industry,” he said.
“Rapid expansion is a clear indication of the sector’s maturity and the increasing confidence of investors and policy making makers in wind energy as a sustainable source of energy, and importantly, the key contributor to economic growth in rural and regional areas.
“But with that growth has come tension.
“There are still some significant concerns being raised in many communities, and I fear those concerns are growing.”
Dyer review shone spotlight on community issues
Mahar’s predecessor Andrew Dyer was behind the review issued last year.
After more than 75 meetings with 700-plus participants and more than 500 submissions, it found that repeated instances of poor community engagement had led to a “material distrust” of renewable energy project developers and, in particular, developers of major new grid transmission projects.
Surveys with landholders and community members returned some pretty bleak feedback, with 95 per cent of respondents going on the record as dissatisfied with the extent of community engagement.
Another 89 per cent said they weren’t satisfied with the explanations developers gave them in response to their questions and concerns.
Mahar said the 37 voluntary industry codes were useful but needed more commitment, warning that governments will step in with regulation if the sector doesn’t.
“We can’t let these recommendations be someone else’s job. Accountability is our collective responsibility, but it is also our best friend to the industry,” he urged.
“A number of successive governments have proved that if [an] industry doesn’t line up with social license and community expectations, they will regulate. I’ve seen similar risks [for renewable energy].”
There are relatively simple ways to build community rapport however, such as sending senior executives into the field to speak directly with locals, giving communities control over designing shared benefits, and being aware of the power imbalance between people steeping in the renewables sector and locals who aren’t.
“Communities still feel like the energy transition is being done to them, not with them. That’s something we must change, and we can do it all together,” he says.
“We must be more collective, more collaborative, more consistent and meaningful in our work with community engagement, particularly those recommendations that Andrew Dyer had in his report.”
