Giant wind farm opponents give up legal battles, to focus efforts on delayed federal green tick
The community group behind the Supreme Court bid to block the giant Robbins Island wind project says it will not pursue further legal action against the huge north-west Tasmania project.
The Circular Head Coastal Awareness Network (CHCAN) will instead focus on opposing its application for federal environmental approval.
CHCAN believes Robbins is the wrong place to build a wind farm due to its role as a habitat for the critically endangered orange bellied parrot and other wildlife, including wedge-tailed eagles and Tasmanian devils.
But the legal challenge was unsuccessful, with the Supreme Court dismissing CHCAN’s case and clearing the way for developer Acen Australia to focus on the project’s progress.
In a statement, CHCAN said it had decided not to take any further action through the Tasmanian Court System and to focus its efforts on the federal environmental process, instead.
The Robbins Island project has been in the EPBC queue since 2017, when it was first determined as a controlled action by then Coalition energy and environment minister Josh Frydenberg.
Since then, changes to the project proposal have required reassessment by environment minister Tanya Plibersek – but a fresh decision on whether or not the project is a controlled action has been delayed a total of five times since 2022.
The Tasmanian Liberal government stands firmly in support of the project, which state energy minister Nick Duigan has described as “vital for Tasmania.”