Ian Campbell (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment and Heritage) Share this | Hansard source

In relation to the siting of wind farms in his own state, Mr McGowan, the WA Labor minister for the environment, said: ‘Sometimes when local communities don’t agree you have to roll over the top of them.’

We believe that wind does have a future in Australia. We believe that it can make a contribution to renewable energy, but we also know that these large industrial wind farms do have massive impacts on communities and potentially massive impacts on the survival of threatened species. You can in fact have a renewable energy policy that builds renewable energy facilities that do make a positive contribution to the environment and minimise their environmental damange. You can in fact have a win-win if you manage it well. But if you do as Labor does and just play cheap politics with this issue, you will actually destroy the chance of the wind energy industry in Australia for all time. I want to work with that industry. I want to make sure that they have a sustainable industry here. Labor obviously wants to work against them.