Farmers vote in favour of nuclear plants, but oppose ban on new wind and solar
NSW Farmers will advocate for nuclear power plants to be built in place of retiring coal-fired stations despite a failed push to oppose new renewable solar and wind projects.
Farmers and industry leaders from across the state gathered in Sydney for the NSW Farmers conference, where the topics of energy transition and future food production were on the table.
In an overwhelming vote, farmers and industry representatives supported the location of nuclear power plants at coal-fired power sites.
The federal opposition in June announced a policy to build nuclear plants on coal sites – two of which are located in NSW at the Liddell power station in the Hunter Valley and Mount Piper in Lithgow.
A motion for a moratorium on industrial scale wind and solar developments in NSW did not pass and was sent to an association committee to be reviewed.
Those in favour of the moratorium said there was a lack of transparency and safety concerns around projects, arguing they were only calling for a temporary halt.
Others argued the motion was based on ideology and renewable projects were critical for the nation’s future power supply.