2016-07-12 - Item 12 - Att 1 - Agriculture and Agricultural Land in Noosa Shire

Figure 7 - KRA 57 Wahpunga Range and associated separation area




In addition the planning scheme protects locally significant resources including hard rock and sand
however these resource areas will be further examined as part of the next planning scheme review
because some may not be viable.

Regardless of likelihood and viability there are several mining leases in the hinterland including
various ones along or close to Lake Macdonald Drive and one at Holts Road Cooroy. There are
also two Exploration Permits (Coal) which extend from Pinbarren north to the Shire border.


7.7     Renewable Energy Farms and Carbon Offsets
Recently there has been an increase in interest for using rural lands for renewable energy farms or
for carbon offsets. There are various forms of renewable energy farms including solar, wind, and
biomass (from plants and trees). In some instances it is just to provide the energy needs of the
balance of an agricultural use, less so it is intended as a commercial operation selling to the grid.

In 2002 Noosa Council endorsed a planning study on “Planning for Greenhouse Gas Emissions”. It
considered that while the coastal part of the Shire, such as Noosa North Shore has reasonable
wind speed it is not as economically attractive as the resource on the coast of the southern states
and it is unlikely any large commercial wind farms would be developed in this region, particularly
given the value of scenic amenity and the cost of land.

It also suggested that solar power generation was far more expensive than other renewable
options (such as hydro, wind, and biomass for grid supply) and is not a competitive option16.
However, it did suggest there may be opportunities in Noosa Shire to establish tree plantations that
could be used for biomass power generation.

The Sunshine Coast Energy Transition Plan 2010-2020 also ruled out large wind farms although it
supported solar power stations and renewable energy generation as a complementary activity to
primary production on rural lands.

16
  It’s worth noting that in the last fourteen years there have been substantial advances in technology and
economies of scale substantially reducing the cost of alternative energy systems.
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