This submission provides a brief overview of the factors that farmers consider when
determining the impact of renewable energy generation, storage or transmission on their
farm business.
Failure to understand the restrictions that renewable energy and transmission can have on
agriculture is driving the loss of social license and landholder resistance to hosting
infrastructure.
Energy experts and safety regulators do not always understand farming practices and
farmers are rarely consulted in changing energy safety regulations.
As farming systems evolve to meet local physical, climatic and regulatory environments and
each state has different safety regulations there is a gap our understanding of how to plan
for renewable energy infrastructure that is seen as a benefit to the farm business.